Ryanair, the largest budget carrier in Europe, said that their bid of €1.40 per share for Aer Lingus, valuing the carrier at €748, will not succeed after the government of Ireland, who owns a 25% stake in the airline, rejected the offer. On Thursday, Ryanair said that they will respect and abide by the decision of the government, which means that their offer isn’t going to be a success.

Noel Dempsey, the Transport Minister, said that the government viewed the bid from Ryanair as greatly undervaluing the carrier. He also added that competition is a significant consideration as well. Ryanair is already the owner of a 29.8% hold in Aer Lingus after they failed to takeover the airline in 2006, where regulators of the European Union rejected the offer due to concerns over the combined airlines leading to a monopoly on 36 routes.

Michael O’Leary, the Chief Executive Officer of Ryanair, said that the decision the government made is the wrong one, and Ryanair doesn’t believe that it is in Aer Lingus’ best interests, as they will be isolated as a small, loss making carrier. When he was asked by RTE, an Irish radio station, if another offer would be considered in the future, he said that they will continue to review the situation.

In Dublin trading on Thursday, Aer Lingus declined to €1.35 by 2.9%, which gives them a market value of €721 million. On the other hand, Ryanair increased to €3.03 by 3.6% in Dublin trading that same day.

Get more information about the carrier at: www.ryanair.com