Five investors submit non-binding bids for Portugal's Azores Airlines

LISBON, Sept 23 (Reuters) - Portugal's air transport operator SATA Holding has received five non-binding offers for the privatisation of Azores Airlines, it said on Wednesday.

• SATA Holding, owned by the Azores regional government, is seeking to sell at least a 75% stake in Azores Airlines, the carrier linking the mid-Atlantic Portuguese archipelago with mainland Portugal, Europe, the United States, Canada and Cape Verde.

• Last week, SATA Holding shortlisted six investors to submit bids, non-binding at this stage, by September 21.

• It said in a statement the five offers it received will now be analysed and evaluated under the terms of the privatisation process, after which selected bidders will be invited to submit binding bids. It did not identify the bidders.

• The airline's privatisation forms part of a restructuring plan for the SATA group approved by the European Commission.

• Azores Airlines, which has a fleet of nine Airbus jets, cut its first-half net loss to €37.1 million ($42.46 million) from €41.1 million a year earlier despite higher fuel costs and weather-related disruptions, according to SATA Holding.                                                                                                                               ($1 = 0.8737 euros)

(Reporting by Sergio Goncalves; editing by Andrei Khalip)