Chile's dominant airline LAN is evaluating opportunities to invest in Brazil and Argentina, the company's biggest shareholder said on Thursday.

LAN tried and failed earlier this year to strike a deal to buy a small Argentine airline, but it continues looking at how to start up new operations in Argentina and Brazil.

"Latin America is first. We are evaluating and seeking opportunities in Brazil and Argentina. The second big priority area is the Asia-Pacific," Sebastian Pinera told reporters on the sidelines of a business leaders' event in Santiago.

Asked whether LAN was interested in buying a stake in Brazil's Varig, which is struggling under a massive debt load and which the Brazilian government is looking to rescue, Pinera said: "Obviously I'm not going to tell you things that we are in the middle of analyzing and researching. Now, Argentina and Brazil are two big priorities for us."

A source in the Brazilian government has said that LAN is not officially involved in its plans to sell off a stake in Varig but has shown interest.LAN, which flies all over the Americas, to Europe, New Zealand and Australia, last week announced a new partnership and code-sharing with Korean Airlines. Sources outside the company have said it is analyzing adding flights to China and Indonesia.

LAN is by far the biggest domestic and international passenger carrier, and cargo carrier in Chile, and it has units or affiliates in Peru, Ecuador and the Dominican Republic.

LAN is one of the healthiest airlines in the world, financially, at a time when many other companies in the sector are still struggling to revive from terrorism and economic slowdown.

LAN announced a dividend on Wednesday and its share price was up 4.66 percent to 3,438.00 pesos per share on Thursday. The airline's share price has jumped 16 percent this year.

(From Reuters, Dezembro 02, 2004)

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