This comes after the court last week said that the conditions of the government in the reprivatisation of TAP were “compatible with EU law”, except for the “beyond necessary” obligation of a national hub.


In the opposite view, the court said that “the requirement to maintain and develop the existing national hub goes beyond what is necessary to attain the intended objective of ties with the Portuguese-speaking third countries concerned.”


The leaders of the consortium, David Neeleman and Humberto Pedrosa, said that this decision will not change their position, with Atlantic Gateway reaffirming that it remains essential for TAP to have its hub in Lisbon as the preferred platform between America and Europe.


“Portugal is very well positioned to be a hub to welcome people in Europe. It is only 3,300 miles from New York. There is no other big city in the European continent that is closer than Lisbon,” Neeleman said.


In the same statement, Pedrosa pointed out that this is an “ambitious project,” ensuring that there is maximum confidence in its success.


Currently, TAP is 50 percent owned by the state and the remaining capital belongs to the Atlantic Gateway consortium (45 percent) and workers (5 percent).