A year after it pioneered trans-Atlantic routes using the Boeing 737 MAX-8, low-cost carrier Norwegian Air Shuttle continues to find itself at the center of takeover speculation with German giant Lufthansa now identified as a potential suitor. IAG, the owner of British Airways and itself partly owned by Gulf carrier Qatar, launched a wave of takeover speculation in April when it announced it had snapped up a 4.61 percent share in Norwegian. It said at the time the investment was intended “to establish a position from which to initiate discussions with Norwegian, including the possibility of a full offer for Norwegian”. READ IAG prompts takeover speculation as it stalks Norwegian. IAG has reportedly since made two further offers for Norwegian but both were rejected. Norwegian has said it has received a number of approaches about share acquisitions, mergers and other transactions since IAG bought its stake and now Lufthansa has joined the queue. "In Europe, everyone is talking to everyone. There's a new wave of consolidation approaching. That means we are also in contact with Norwegian," Lufthansa chief executive Carsten Spohr was quoted as saying by German newspaper Sueddeutsche Zeitung on Monday. Spohr was cagey about Lufthansa’s next step, noting that takeovers were always a question of strategic value, price and anti-trust considerations. “There are no easy answers,’’ he said. The talk about consolidation has been sparked in part by the collapse last year of Air Berlin and Monarch and a sense in the airline industry that 2018 will be a tougher year than 2017, particularly given the increase in fuel prices. High-profile Norwegian has been growing rapidly to become one of Europe’s biggest low-cost carriers and in May carried 3.5 million passengers, up 17 percent on the same month in 2017. But it has been losing money because of its aggressive expansion, prompting industry skepticism about the viability of its longer-haul flights. It had $US2.9 billion in debt at the end of 2017, according to The Wall Street Journal, and earlier this year was forced to raise equity amounting to almost a quarter of its total pre-IAG bid market valuation of almost $900 million. Nonetheless, it has been a serious thorn in the side of full-service carriers, offering trans-Atlantic flights starting at £99 one-way andshowing no signs of slowing its expansion. Its pioneering use of the Boeing 737 MAX -8 on flights between the US and Europe sees it operate the aircraft’s longest routes on 3000nm (5556km) trans-Atlantic trips connecting airports in New York and Rhode Island with Ireland and the UK. It is now the world’s sixth biggest LCC and carried around 33 million passengers in 2017. It operates 500 routes to 150 destinations in Europe, North Africa, the Middle East, Thailand, the Carribean, the US and South America. Boasting a fleet of 150 aircraft, it will take delivery of 11 Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners, 12 Boeing 737 MAX 8 and two Boeing 737 800 aircraft during 2018 to give it an average fleet age of just 3.7 years. The airline said last week that more than 300,000 customers had traveled on its MAX routes in the first year. The three most popular routes were from Newburgh's New York-Stewart International Airport to Edinburgh and Dublin and from T. F. Green International Airport in Providence, Rhode Island, to Dublin. It said US demand remained high with more than 60 percent of trans-Atlantic tickets purchased within the country. “This is still early days for our transatlantic service, which is the driving force behind Norwegian’s growth,’’ Norwegian chief commercial officer Thomas Ramdahl said. “American customers have shown great interest in our affordable fares on the MAX routes and we will continue to welcome more passengers onboard as we expand the service in the future.’’