Yesterday, the Left Bloc (BE) argued that SATA’s restructuring plan needs to be renegotiated with the European Commission to avoid “the precipice that the Regional Government has placed in front of the company when it stated that the company will close by the end of the year if it is not privatized.”

Speaking after a meeting with SINTAVA – Aviation and Airport Workers’ Union, MP António Lima pointed to SATA’s partnership with TAP “as the solution that can prevent the Azoreans from being abandoned.”

The parliamentarian expressed “concern about the point to which the Government has allowed SATA to reach, despite having had all the conditions to save the airline, including a capital increase of €453 million.”

António Lima warned of “the enormous negative social and economic impact” that would result from the airline’s closure, both on the mobility of Azoreans and on jobs.

“Whether you agree with privatization or not, no one believes that this will go well. Therefore, the Bloco argues that the process must be stopped immediately and renegotiated with the European Commission,” he said.

The deputy stressed that “every time another deadline for submitting proposals passes, we are closer to the precipice that the government itself has placed in front of SATA, saying that if it is not privatized by the end of the year, it will close.”

“The end of the year is only two months away, and that is serious,” he warned.

For the BE, the only viable solution is close coordination between SATA and TAP, negotiated between the Government of the Republic and the Regional Government, because privatization “is not viable and it is necessary to ensure that the Azoreans will not be abandoned.”

“If a new restructuring plan for the SATA Group is not found, the outlook is bleak,” lamented António Lima.

The deputy also pointed out that “if it is confirmed that the Region will assume all the company’s liabilities, a condition identified as essential to the completion of the deal by one of the interested shareholders, this will mean that the Azoreans will pay €700 million, including the aircraft that the new company will operate.”

“At this moment, it is the very viability of SATA Air Açores that may be at stake, not only as a result of the privatization of SATA Internacional, but also due to the privatization of ground handling, which is a large part of the company that connects the islands of the Azores,” he said.

For António Lima, “it is essential to have a company that serves the mobility of the Azoreans and that serves the economy of the Azores.”

The parliamentarian also criticized the Regional Government for “only talking about the Azores Tariff,” recalling that “without SATA there is no Azores Tariff.”

In Diário Insular-José Lourenço-director

Translated into English as a community outreach program by the Portuguese Beyond Borders Institute (PBBI) and the Modern and Classical Languages and Literatures Department (MCLL), in collaboration with Bruma Publication and ADMA (Azores-Diaspora Media Alliance) at California State University, Fresno. PBBI thanks Luso Financial for sponsoring NOVIDADES.