European Commission will probe whether TAP’s €3.2B restructuring plan complied with EU state aid rules after approving €1.2B loan to the airline.
TAP Air Portugal, a Portuguese airline, has been losing money for years. Its current restructuring plan would see a €3.2 billion state aid and an ambitious overhaul plan with thousands of job cuts and significant fleet reduction.
At the same time, EU finally greenlit the €1.2 billion loan that approved in June 2020. It has been challenged in court by Ryanair, and annulled in May 2021; nevertheless, the Commission found it to not infringe on any rules, and the loan was re-approved.
As per the restructuring plan, TAP is supposed to readjust its operations before 2023, but the plan also includes additional half-a-billion in case the airline is unable to access the financial markets by 2023-2025.