10th Oct 2007 11:29
Aer Lingus Group PLC10 October 2007 Aer Lingus Group plc ISE: EIL1 LSE: AERL Aer Lingus moves to force sale of Ryanair stake Dublin & London, 10 October 2007: Aer Lingus today confirmed it is to take legalproceedings to force Ryanair to dispose of its shareholding in Aer Lingus. This follows confirmation by Philip Lowe, the E.U.'s Director General forCompetition, that the European Commission is to adopt a decision that the MergerRegulation does not give it the legal authority to force the sale of Ryanair'sstake following its prohibition of Ryanair's bid for Aer Lingus. The Commission's decision will open the way for Aer Lingus to make an appeal tothe European Court of First Instance that would, if successful, enable theCommission to order Ryanair to dispose of its stake in its main competitor. Itis Aer Lingus' view that the Regulation does give the Commission that power,since the stake was part of the original takeover attempt which the Commissionprohibited. Aer Lingus' application to the Court of First Instance will be made in thecoming weeks. Aer Lingus will also ask the Court, as a matter of urgency, to make an order toprevent Ryanair from interfering in the running of Aer Lingus' business pendingjudgment on the appeal. Summarising the Aer Lingus position Mr John Sharman, Chairman said "We are fullyprepared to face competitive opposition on the runways and despite its attemptsto portray us otherwise, a strong, independent and competitive Aer Lingus is anissue for Ryanair, particularly out of Dublin. Since this time last year,Ryanair has pursued every available tactic to prevent the further development ofAer Lingus as a competitive force, in order to defend its own patch out ofDublin." Mr Sharman concluded "Ryanair's reason for buying shares is to control AerLingus via takeover. While the European Commission has rejected any takeover,Ryanair has appealed against that decision and in the meantime has used itsshareholding to attempt to interfere with the commercial business of Aer Lingusand to further its own interests. This confirms that the real and only purposeof it holding the shares is its plan to obtain control over its main Irishcompetitor. As the takeover has been barred, it follows that Ryanair'sshareholding, built up for the purpose of mounting a takeover, should also bebarred." ENDS About Aer Lingus Group plc Aer Lingus is an Irish low-cost, low-fares airline, providing both long-haul andshort-haul passenger transportation services. Aer Lingus' low-cost, low-faresmodel is centred on maintaining low unit cost, offering one-way fares,maintaining effective fleet utilisation and developing the Aer Lingus brand.Consistent with this low-cost model, Aer Lingus' primary distribution channel isits website aerlingus.com. For further information please visit www.aerlingus.com or contact: Investors & analysts Irish Media International Media Olwyn Kelly Padraig McKeon / Sarah Ryan Matthew Fletcher/Victoria Palmer-MooreAer Lingus Group plc Drury Communications Powerscourt Tel: +353 1 886 3038 Tel: +353 1 260 5000 Tel: +44 207 250 1446Email: +353 87 2312632 (PMK) +44 207 324 0494 (MF)[email protected] +353 87 6767452 (SR) +44 207 324 0493 (VPM) +44 7796 693066 (MF) Mark Kenny/Jonathan Neilan Email: [email protected] Email:K Capital Source [email protected] Tel: +353 1 631 5500Email:[email protected] This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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