ITA Airways chairman says deal with Lufthansa largely agreed

ROME (Reuters) -ITA Airways has worked out the main elements of a partial takeover deal with Lufthansa and hopes to announce it soon, the chairman of the state-controlled Italian airline said on Wednesday.

Sources have previously said the German carrier is negotiating with Rome over the purchase of a 40% stake in ITA, valued at around 200 million euros ($218.82 million), with the idea of buying the rest at a later stage.

"The structure of the deal is defined and the fact that some of the details might change is part of the negotiating process," Chairman Antonino Turicchi told reporters.

"The course is set," he added, speaking on the sidelines of a presentation of a new aeroplane at Rome's Fiumicino airport.

A Lufthansa spokesperson said talks were "well on the way" but declined to comment further.

The exclusivity period for talks between ITA, the successor to bankrupt Alitalia, and Lufthansa ends on April 24, although the deadline is not binding.

Lufthansa CEO Carsten Spohr said last month that final negotiations were focusing on price, given the ongoing losses at the Italian carrier.

ITA, which says it is still in a start-up phase, posted a loss of around 486 million euros last year due to the lingering effects of the pandemic and rising fuel costs.

($1 = 0.9140 euros)

(Reporting by Angelo Amante, writing by Keith Weir, editing by Alvise Armellini, Sharon Singleton and Louise Heavens)