Italy yet to decide whether to use veto powers in Atlantia bid – minister

ROME (Reuters) – Italy’s infrastructure minister said on Monday it was “too early to say” whether the Rome government would exercise its special veto powers in the takeover bid for Atlantia planned by the Benetton family and U.S. fund Blackstone.

“We need to know the overall plan and evaluate it,” Enrico Giovannini told a conference in Rome.

Rome sometimes uses its special vetting ‘golden powers’ to shield strategic assets and may choose to apply them to protect Rome’s airports, which are operated by Atlantia’s AdR unit.

(Reporting by Giuseppe Fonte, writing by Agnieszka Flak; Editing by Keith Weir)