Ryanair to appeal EC’s decision to block Aer Lingus deal

   Ryanair to appeal EC’s decision to block Aer Lingus dealEurope’s low cost airline, Ryanair Holdings has said that the company is planning to file an appeal against the decision by the European Commission (EC) to block a proposed deal byteh company to acquire its Irish peer, Aer Lingus.

This week, the EC announced its decision to block the deal for the second time. The European Commission had issued formal objections to a new deal by Ryanair to takeover Aer Lingus alleging that the combining of the two Dublin based carriers would impact competition climate. Ryanair also said that it was informed by the European Commission that the €694 million takeover proposal is not likely to be approved.

Aer Lingus and Ryanair, both believe that the deal is unlikely to be approved by the European regulators. Ryanair has assured European regulators that there are radical remedies to address the concerns relating to lower competition. On the other hand, Aer Lingus indicated that the deal is headed for a failure. Ryanair already owns 30 percent of Aer Lingus.

EU's competition commissioner, Joaquin Almunia, said that the decision to block the takeover “protects more than 11 million Irish and European passengers who travel each year to and from Dublin, Cork, Knock and Shannon.”