By Francesca Piscioneri
ROME (Reuters) -Ryanair said on Wednesday it expected to expand its leading position in the Italian market in the coming years despite regulatory disputes over the past few months.
The Irish budget carrier would be interested in slots that could become available at Rome's Fiumicino airport as the result of a planned combination between Lufthansa and ITA Airways, Chief Executive Michael O'Leary said.
Speaking at a news conference in Rome, O'Leary said Ryanair (LON:0RYA)'s clash this week with Italy's antitrust regulator (AGCM) stemmed from a dispute it had with companies including Spanish online travel agency eDreams.
The AGCM has ordered Ryanair to stop limiting or blocking the sale of its flight tickets by travel agencies.
"We think the case has no merit whatsoever," O'Leary said, having arrived carrying a placard reading: "Stop OTA (Online Travel Agency) Pirates, Protect Passengers."
A Ryanair representative will meet the AGCM in Rome on Thursday. Ryanair said it would appeal any definitive AGCM ruling against it to an Italian regional court where it is confident of winning its case.
The company also plans to lodge a counter-complaint with the AGCM about eDreams' Prime membership service, which O'Leary said charged passengers an annual 55 euros ($58.5) for discounts that did not exist.
In response, eDreams said it welcomed the AGCM action and criticised Ryanair's response.
"Such aggressive and bullying behaviour is aimed at deflecting scrutiny from their own questionable actions and underscores their anti-competitive culture," it said in a statement.
ITALY GROWTH
Ryanair is the largest airline operator in Italy but fell out with the government last year over fares to Italy's two main islands, Sicily and Sardinia. O'Leary said the carrier was not exploiting its position and had good relations with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's administration.
Ryanair expects to carry 100 million passengers on Italian routes by 2030, up from 60 million this year.
The Italian market will be reshaped if Germany's Lufthansa wins European approval for its plan to take a 41% stake in ITA, the successor to the now defunct Alitalia.
O'Leary said he ultimately expected consolidation of Europe's airline sector to something akin to the situation in the United States, with three large long-haul carriers and one main budget rival. But Ryanair had no plans to take part in M&A.
"We do support the M&A process across Europe," he said.
"We think Lufthansa should be allowed to buy ITA but with appropriate slot handover to protect competition in Linate (Milan) and Fuimicino," he said. ($1 = 0.9400 euros)