(Bloomberg) --
Airbus SE is the favorite to win a multi-billion tender for a new aircraft fleet for the successor of Italy's bankrupt Alitalia SpA, Corriere della Sera reported on Sunday.
Executives at Italia Trasporto Aereo SpA, known as ITA, have still not taken a final decision and are also talking to Boeing Co., Corriere said, citing three industry sources with knowledge of the matter that it didn't name. Although Airbus is favored, Boeing could offer an “unprecedented package offer with airplanes discounted by as much as 70%,” the Italian newspaper wrote.
The tender is valued at $5.3 billion and would provide 81 new generation planes within four years, it added. Representatives for Airbus and Boeing declined to comment to Corriere.
ITA plans to start services on Oct. 15 after months of talks with European Commission officials over terms of an overhaul and aid previously granted to Alitalia. The company faces an uphill battle to establish itself after low-cost rivals took advantage of the pandemic and a long restructuring process to grab chunks of its home market.
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