Denmark’s A.P. Moeller-Maersk A/S which wholly-owns container terminal operator – APM Terminals, will participate in the bidding process for two of the biggest Greek ports – Piraeus and Thessaloniki – after the country’s Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras brought the sale of the ports on the table in the government’s bailout proposal last week, reports Bloomberg.
If chosen, Maersk will operate the ports through APM Terminals.
The Syriza controlled government took office in January partly on the promise to end austerity measures and stop a number of privatisations, including the sale of the government-owned ports.
The previous government led by Antonis Samaras had shortlisted five companies, including Cosco, for a 67% stake in the Port of Piraeus, but the sale was stopped by the newly elected leftist government led by Tsipras.
However, faced with the increasing pressure from the European Union and the International Monetary Fund, the Greek government today reportedly accepted to meet the majority of demands imposed by creditors, many of which were rejected in the recent referendum, in return for a EUR 53.5 billion bailout.
The binding bid dates for the two ports will be disclosed by October 2015 at the latest, the proposal stated.
Copyright Ships & Ports Ltd. Permission to use quotations from this article is granted subject to appropriate credit given to www.shipsandports.com.ng as the source.