Irish budget airline Ryanair has acquired the remaining 25% of its Austrian subsidiary Laudamotion for an undisclosed sum, it has been announced.
Ryanair previously owned 75% of shares in Laudamotion. Last year, the Austrian airline was bought back by the founder, former Formula One racing champion Niki Lauda, and rebranded. He then gave Ryanair the option to buy the carrier outright.
Ryanair acquires final stake in Laudamotion
Ryanair acquires final stake in Laudamotion/twitter
“Laudamotion is now a 100 per cent-owned subsidiary of Ryanair Holdings plc,” said Laudamotion in a statement. There are detailed plans for the company's rapid growth in the near future, to 30 aircraft and 7.5 million passengers in 2021, from 19 aircraft and 4 million passengers this year.
Ryanair's chief executive Michael O'Leary refused to disclose the price paid for Laudamotion, but in March 2018, the Irish airline did say it would pay less than €50 million for the previous 75%. The deal for the final quarter was reached on 31 December but was not announced immediately. Mr O'Leary confirmed that Mr Lauda would be staying on at Laudamotion as chairman of the board.
“Niki has great experience in the airline industry, particularly in the airline industry in Germany and in Austria, ” Mr O’Leary said of Mr Lauda’s role. “He knows all the players. When we were buying it, he had access to the various ministers in Austria, which we didn’t have.”
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