They include Carlo Toto, boss of rival Italian airline Air One, as well as US private equity fund Texas Pacific and Italian banking group UniCredit. They are joined by a consortium led by Italian entrepreneur Carlo De Benedetti and another US private equity group, Matlin Patterson Global Advisers. Rome is selling 30.1% of the ailing airline, which would require the buyer to make a formal bid for the rest. The Italian government said the five suitors now had until mid-April to present non-binding offers. It first announced details of the sale in December, and chose the final five bidders from the 11 groups that originally expressed interest. The Italian government currently has a 49.9% stake in the airline. Alitalia said last month it expected to see its annual losses widen to €380 million ($498 million) in 2006. The airline has struggled against strong competition from low-cost rivals, higher fuel prices, over-staffing and numerous strikes by employees. (BBC NEWS)
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