A deadline for submitting binding bids for a 67-percent stake of the Thessaloniki Port Authority's (OL.Th) shares was concluded on Friday, with the Greek privatization fund's (TAIPED or HRADF) declaring himself "satisfied" with the number of bids but without announcing how many were filed.
A subsequent press release by the fund also did not provide details.
Four consortia had previously shown an interest in acquiring the majority stake and management of Greece's second largest port: a consortium that includes the German fund DIEP, French shipping and container group CMA CGM and Thessaloniki-based Russian-Greek businessman Ivan Savvidis; Japanese multinational Mitsui OSK Lines, part of the massive Mitsui & Co conglomerate; P&O Steam Navigation Co, part of the Dubai Ports World group, which had previously participated in another, failed, privatization attempt; and finally, ICTSI, which is based in the Philippines, and is a major port operator in the Asia-Pacific region.
