Italian infrastructure group Atlantia will not be part of the consortium intended to save the struggling airline Alitalia.

According to Atlantia, which is controlled by the Benetton family, it lacks the conditions to join the consortium, which is led by state railway operator Ferrovie dello Stato.

Atlantia's announcement comes after months of negotiations and one day before the deadline for a binding bid for Alitalia, writes Reuters.

Alitalia has already burned through its cash reserves and has been managed by an administrator since May 2017. Talks with Ferrovie have been ongoing for a year without an agreement.

Ferrovie and Atlantia have previously talked to Delta Airlines and Lufthansa about joining as investors.

If no bid is submitted, it is not ruled out that Alitalia will be nationalized and then sold again to private players after a few years, reports the daily newspaper La Repubblica.

Source:Finwire