Lufthansa AG (LHA.XE) should be able to win approval from European Commission regulators by the end of July for its purchase of Austrian Airlines (AUA.VI) if it submits an acceptable plan to ease the commission's antitrust concerns in the next few days, a commission spokesman said Thursday.

The commission late Wednesday said it would conduct an in-depth investigation of the merger due to worries that, unchecked, the deal could lead to higher fares and reduced choices for consumers on certain routes.

"On condition that Lufthansa comes up with acceptable remedies within the next few days it can have clearance before the end of July," said Jonathan Todd, the commission's antitrust spokesman.

-By Peppi Kiviniemi and Matthew Dalton, Dow Jones Newswires; +32 2 741 1487; matthew.dalton@dowjones.com