A MoU between the state-run privatization fund (TAIPED) and the consortium that won an international tender to develop the coastal Helleniko property will be signed within the day, a relevant government spokeswoman promised on Tuesday.
The signing is expected to mark the final prior action demanded by creditors in order to free up 7.5 billion euros for Greek coffers, the biggest part of a 10.3-billion-euro bailout package for this year.
Spokeswoman Olga Gerovassili added that a deadline for signing a contract for the Helleniko site is Nov. 16, whereas the MoU doesn’t mean that negotiations have concluded.
The tender was unveiled and awarded to a consortium led by Athens-based Lamda Development during the previous Samaras government's tenure, with today’s ruling SYRIZA party then virulently against the privatization of the site. The investment is cited as one of the biggest if not the biggest real estate project in the Mediterranean basin at present.
Nevertheless, creditors have been adamant that the leftist government jumpstart and "adopt as its own" a sweeping privatization program, with Helleniko viewed as a milestone for the recession-plagued country.
On her part, the spokeswoman merely said that the government will attempt to negotiate “substantive” changes to the draft contract, such as “up-front” investments and an increase in green space relative to the building area co-efficient. She also said changes demanded for the state-run civil aviation authority structure have been made, stressing that the two “open issues” of a day earlier have now been resolved.
