Ryanair chief executive (CEO) Michael O'Leary will travel to Cyprus on Thursday to hold talks with the local government regarding the potential takeover of Cyprus Airways.

The airline, now controlled by the Cypriot government, has been operating at a loss for years and it was recently forced to offset assets, including its slots at Heathrow airport, in order to stay afloat.

In July, almost 20 companies, including Ryanair, submitted a non-binding expression of interest in the carrier, even though O'Leary said that his company wasn't particularly interested in taking over the Cyprus-based airliner.

"We are engaged in the process and hope something will come of it. It's a very political process down there," O'Leary told a news conference in Dublin on Thursday.

The Ryanair CEO added that under the group's proposal, Cypriot Airways, which is currently under investigation by the European commission for a £25m capital increase in 2013, would operate under a different air operator's certificate than Ryanair and it would also retain its own brand.

O'Leary said Ryanair could boost Cypriot Airways' passengers to about 3m a year, which would be a significant growth from the current figure of 600,000, which represents a 50% decline from peak value.

In its 29-year history, Ryanair has only ever taken control of another airline, when it completed the takeover of Buzz in April 2003, incorporating it into the Ryanair brand.

Ryanair shares were down 0.22% to €6.81 at 12:52 on Thursday.

DC

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