Romania starts talks to sell stake in state-controlled airline

The Romanian Government has started negotiations with several companies, including Turkish Airlines, to sell a stake in state-controlled airline Tarom. The state will keep a 51% stake if the investor is not from the European Union, or will sell a majority stake if the future owner is a European company, said Prime Minister Victor Ponta, cited by local Mediafax. He added that the negotiations have kicked off, but no agreement has been yet reached. “Tarom is a good company, with a good regional perspective, but it needs restructuring, to return to profit,” Ponta said. Tarom posted a loss of almost EUR 27 million last year, down 8% compared to 2013. It estimated a loss of EUR 1.8 million for this year. editor@romania-insider.com