The TAP Air Portugal Sale Has Entered Its Final Stage

Portugal has moved the sale of a stake in TAP Air Portugal into its final stage. On September 1, 2026, the state holding company Parpublica delivered to the government its assessment of the two binding offers on the table, one from Air France-KLM and one from the Lufthansa Group.

The bids, submitted on July 29, cover a 44.9% stake in the flag carrier, with a further 5% reserved for employees. The Portuguese state would keep majority control for now. The Finance Ministry confirmed the handover in a statement reported by Bloomberg.

What Happens Next

The government now reviews Parpublica’s report. Under the rules Portugal published for the process, the Council of Ministers can accept one offer outright, invite one or both groups into a further round of improved bids, or reject both if they fall short of the published criteria.

Infrastructure Minister Miguel Pinto Luz has said he wants the process concluded in September. The actual capital injection is not expected until the summer of 2027.

Portugal has been trying to bring a private partner into TAP since 2023. An earlier attempt stalled amid political upheaval. The current government has made the sale a priority, and TAP has since posted consecutive years of net profit, which sharpened interest from bidders.

The winning bidder has to commit to a ten-year growth plan, more flying to the Azores, Madeira, the Portuguese diaspora and Portuguese-speaking countries, an expanded operation at Porto, continued aircraft maintenance work in Portugal, and keeping the airline’s headquarters in the country.

Why Two of Europe’s Big Three Want It

TAP is a mid-sized airline, but its Lisbon base is unusually well placed. Its network into Brazil, Portuguese-speaking Africa and the wider transatlantic is stronger than anything Air France-KLM or Lufthansa can build through their existing hubs.

Air France-KLM wants to make Lisbon its dedicated southern European hub and move TAP into the SkyTeam alliance and the group’s transatlantic joint venture with Delta, which supports the bid. That would pull TAP out of Star Alliance, where it has sat since 2005.

Lufthansa would keep TAP in Star Alliance and run it as another spoke in its multi-hub group alongside SWISS, Austrian, Brussels Airlines and ITA Airways. It points to more than 70 years of its own operations in Portugal.

Either outcome continues the slow consolidation of European aviation into three large groups, the same logic behind Korean Air’s takeover of Asiana. IAG, the owner of Iberia and British Airways, looked at TAP as well but walked away at the April deadline because Portugal would not promise a route to full ownership.