ROME (dpa-AFX) - Lufthansa is the only interested party to have submitted an offer to take a stake in Italian airline Ita Airways. This was announced by the Ministry of Economy and Finance as the owner of the Alitalia successor on Wednesday evening in Rome. It said the letter of intent from Germany would now be examined, after which exclusive negotiations between Lufthansa and the Italian government could begin for a final purchase agreement. No details or timeframe for the duration of the review were given. The deadline for offers had expired at 6 p.m. that evening.

Earlier, Lufthansa had announced that it had submitted an offer for a minority stake in Ita. The Frankfurt-based MDax group also wants an option to acquire the remaining shares at a later date. Amounts were not disclosed./msw/DP/stw