The rail chaos that Catalonia has been experiencing for the past week is worsening. The closure of the Rubí tunnel has disrupted freight traffic leaving the Port of Barcelona bound for France. After detecting a crack in the tunnel's return section, the port has had to completely halt traffic since Monday. The disruption in Rubí, which has persisted for days, prevents trains from Barcelona and southern Catalonia from reaching the rest of the continent, as well as preventing trains from arriving from France.

A new opportunity has arisen for Spanish Economy Minister Carlos Cuerpo to become president of the Eurogroup, now that the current president, Paschal Donohoe, has resigned to head the World Bank. Air Europa also has a new CEO following the departure of Jesús Nuño de la Rosa, and Josep Santacreu will be the new president of ASCAME. These are the week's most notable appointments:

Turkish Airlines' acquisition of Air Europa is beginning to yield its first results. The airline's former CEO, Jesús Nuño de la Rosa, has announced his departure after reaching an agreement with Chairman Juan José Hidalgo. The company emphasized that the agreement was reached "in an atmosphere of friendship and utmost cordiality" and was also approved by the board of directors. "Air Europa thanks Jesús Nuño de la Rosa for his commitment, dedication, and loyalty," the company, which is predominantly Spanish and family-owned, stated in a press release. Nuño de la Rosa's replacement, who had held the position since July 2022, will be announced in the coming days. Just under two weeks ago, Air Europa closed the entrance Turkish Airlines has invested €300 million in Air Europa. The Turkish offer came after Germany's Lufthansa ruled out acquiring a stake in Air Europa, as did IAG, the holding company that owns Iberia, Vueling, Level, and British Airways. This injection of funds completes the €475 million financing granted to the airline. by the public company SEPI During the pandemic, the deadline for repaying the state aid was brought forward by a year.

Air Europa has closed the agreement that allows Turkish Airlines to acquire a stake in the airline with a €300 million investment. The transaction, finalized early this morning, will be carried out through a loan convertible into an equity stake which, once the necessary authorizations are obtained, will become a 26% share. This cash injection completes the €475 million financing granted to the airline by the state-owned holding company SEPI during the pandemic. This brings forward by one year the repayment deadline for the state aid received. This transaction values 100% of Air Europa, a company with predominantly Spanish and family-owned capital, at approximately €1.175 billion. The Hidalgo family, through Globalia, will remain the majority shareholder of the company. Meanwhile, IAG – the holding company that owns Iberia, Vueling, and British Airways – will retain its current stake through the purchase of shares in Globalia. With this repayment, which includes interest, the amount recovered by the fund created to rescue strategic companies affected by the pandemic (FASEE) totals €1.425 billion. This sum represents 53% of the €2.681 billion granted. In addition to Air Europa, Ávoris, Eurodivisas, Wamos, Rugui Steel, Ferroatlántica, Soho, Hesperia, and Hotusa have also repaid their loans.

Turkish Airlines, the Turkish flag carrier, has submitted a binding offer to acquire Air Europa, currently holding a minority stake. The offer comes after Germany's Lufthansa ruled out a stake in Air Europa.

The tourism sector broke records in 2024 and is on track to repeat them this year, although the figures are growing. with less force in these first six monthsWith El Prat airport exceeding its theoretical capacity limit, with more than 55 million passengers, one of its routes has become the busiest in all of Europe. The short-haul flight between Barcelona and Palma de Mallorca received the highest number of travelers in 2024, according to data collected from 240 airlines by the International Air Transport Association (IATA).

The European Commission announced Tuesday that it has opened an in-depth investigation to examine Iberia's takeover of Air Europa over suspicions that the deal could reduce competition on 70 domestic and international routes to and from Spain. "We will carefully examine whether the proposed transaction would adversely affect competition on domestic routes, which could lead to higher prices and lower quality for travelers", said the vice president for competition of the EU executive, Margrethe Vestager.