Officials in Norway have mooted the sale of the national stake in Scandinavian airline SAS.

The Trade and Industry Ministry earlier requested permission from the national parliament to proceed with the sale.

“SAS continues to face a number of challenges which they are likely to best meet with an industrial partner as owners,” read a statement.

Norway presently holds a 14.29 per cent stake in SAS.

Sweden and Denmark, which respectively hold 21.4 and 14.3 per cent in the carrier, have also said they are interested in selling, with Sweden saying early last year it would sell at the “opportune moment.”

France-KLM, Lufthansa and British Airways, as part of International Airlines Group, are all believed to be interested in acquisitions at present.

SAS has been hard-hit by the rise of low-cost airline Norwegian and by plunging passenger traffic numbers in the wake of the global economic crisis.

Last year, the carrier lost SEK2.22 billion.