Plans for a joint European leisure airline between TUI and Etihad have fallen apart after Etihad is believed to have walked away from the table.
A statement from TUI said the two groups will not continue their negotiations about the planned joint venture between TUI fly and Niki.
“A strong European leisure airline continues to make great strategic sense. After all, the aviation sector is characterised by overcapacity in Germany,” said Sebastian Ebel, member of TUI AG’s Executive Board in charge of Central Region.
“However, Niki is no longer available for a joint venture. We will push the repositioning of TUI fly further ahead in order to develop long-term prospects for the airline and its employees.”
TUI Group said it ‘remains open for a partnership or the formation of joint ventures serving the strategic goal of reshaping the market’.
A statement from Etihad said it had taken the decision ‘following many months of negotiations, in good faith, during which time the parties have been unable to reach agreement on the final nature of such a joint venture’.
“The leisure operations of Air Berlin group will now continue to operate as a separate business unit, under the NIKI brand. Further details of this structure will be announced in due course by Air Berlin,” it said.
Last November, TUI AG’s Supervisory Board had given the green light for the creation of the new venture.
The proposal was for Etihad to acquire Airberlin’s holiday operations, mainly in southern Europe and north Africa, together with Airberlin’s participation in Niki, to enter into a joint venture with TUI’s German airline subsidiary TUI fly.
The new airline joint venture was to be based in Vienna and would have served a broad route network with TUI fly and NIKI.
TUI AG was to hold a 24.8% stake in the joint venture, with Etihad holding 25% of the interests. The remaining 50.2% would have been held by Niki Privatstiftung.
