FRANKFURT: A German union criticized Air Berlin’s administrators for delaying a decision on a carve-up of the insolvent airline until after this month’s election, saying it was irresponsible to leave thousands of jobs in the balance.
Administrators are seeking to sell the business, with bids due to be submitted by 2 p.m. (12:00 GMT) on Friday. However, a final decision has been pushed back to Sept. 25, the day after Germany’s national election and four days later than previously planned.
“This postponement is at the expense of the workers, who want a decision on their jobs and their future,” Verdi union board member Christine Behle said in a statement on Friday.
Air Berlin, Germany’s second largest airline, filed for insolvency last month after major shareholder Etihad withdrew funding following years of losses.
Chancellor Angela Merkel’s coalition government has granted a €150 million ($179 million) loan to prevent Air Berlin’s planes from being grounded.
Air Berlin employs around 8,000 people, but it is not clear how much of the company will survive.
Most potential investors are seen as being interested primarily in the airline’s roughly 140 leased aircraft and its airport landing and take-off slots rather than its operating business or employees.
Leading German airline Lufthansa plans to make an offer for up to 90 planes, including Austrian unit Niki’s fleet and 38 crewed planes it already leases from Air Berlin, a source has told Reuters.
British budget carrier easyJet is also interested in up to 40 planes, according to previous media reports.
Three-time Formula One world champion Niki Lauda has partnered with holiday firm Thomas Cook’s German airline Condor to make a bid worth around €100 million for Niki and 17 additional Air Berlin aircraft, the former racing driver has told Austrian media.
Other interested parties include aviation industry investor Hans Rudolf Woehrl, who says he has submitted a bid for the whole of Air Berlin, while German family-owned logistics company Zeitfracht and China’s LinkGlobal Logistics have also expressed their interest.
German daily Handelsblatt said Thursday that the former head of German utility EnBW, Utz Claassen, had put up €100 million to buy the carrier and pledged another €600 million in liquidity.
Air Berlin was forced to cancel flights on two days this week after pilots called in sick in unusually high numbers, potentially complicating rescue efforts.
— Reuters
German union attacks Air Berlin administrators for decision delay
German union attacks Air Berlin administrators for decision delay
Egypt accounts for 19% of global date output
JEDDAH: Egypt has emerged as the world’s largest producer of dates, generating around 2 million tonnes annually from more than 24 million date palms, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation.
The government is seeking to further strengthen the sector by expanding the cultivation of high-value export varieties, the Egyptian Cabinet said, noting that more than 200 facilities — including processing plants and packing centers — support the industry. Many of these facilities have undergone recent upgrades through combined public and private investment.
Global demand for dates is rising steadily. According to market research firm Mordor Intelligence, the global dates market is projected to grow from about $29.33 billion in 2025 to approximately $44.07 billion by 2031.
Growth is being driven by increasing consumer preference for natural sweeteners, health-oriented diets, and improved cold-chain infrastructure that supports broader distribution and exports.
Egypt’s date exports have recorded significant growth, supported by quality improvements and successful efforts to access new markets across Europe, Asia, and Africa, the Cabinet statement said.
The release highlighted contributions from the UAE, which helped rehabilitate the date factory in Siwa Oasis at a cost of roughly 14 million Egyptian pounds ($298,000), renovated and upgraded the date complex in El-Kharga in the New Valley for about 17 million pounds, and established a date cooling complex in the Western Desert oases with a storage capacity of 4,000 tonnes. These investments have helped enhance efficiency across the production chain.
Further expansion is underway through the development of specialized industrial complexes for dates in key industrial hubs, including Sadat City, Borg El Arab, 10th of Ramadan City, and 6th of October City.
Agriculture and Land Reclamation Minister Alaa Farouk said Egypt accounts for approximately 19 percent of global date production, reiterating plans to focus on export-oriented varieties with higher added value.
Speaking during a tour of the sixth Cairo Date Festival at the Agricultural Museum in Dokki, Farouk emphasized the need to improve post-harvest systems such as sorting, grading, and packaging to ensure compliance with international quality standards.
He also urged research institutions and agricultural faculties to accelerate innovation in disease-resistant varieties and adopt smart farming technologies to address climate change and pest-related challenges.
Matrouh Gov. Maj. Gen. Khaled Shoaib underscored the importance of coordination between the agriculture ministry and major palm-growing governorates to boost production and enhance value through processing and packaging.
Cairo Gov. Ibrahim Saber said exhibitions such as the Cairo Date Festival play a key role in supporting local producers, expanding marketing channels, and stimulating economic activity, particularly for small and medium-sized enterprises, while ensuring the availability of high-quality products at affordable prices ahead of Ramadan.
