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CMA CGM's Terminal Link joins bidding for Thessaloniki port

CMA CGM's Terminal Link joins bidding for Thessaloniki port
France’s CMA CGM has joined the chase for control of Greece’s Thessaloniki port, view as an East Mediterranean hub for Eastern Europe.

Interest on the part of the world’s third biggest container shipping company in the 67% stake in Thessaloniki Port Authority (OLTh) being sold by the Greek government has created fresh momentum in the project.

CMA CGM has agreed to take part in a consortium that will bid for the stake through its Terminal Link subsidiary which has joined forces with the consortium’s main stakeholder, Deutsche Invest Equity Partners, and Russian-Greek investor Ivan Savvidis group.

The consortium along with DP World, Japan's Mitsui & Co Ltd and Philippines-based International Container Terminal Services Inc (ICTSI) are expected to submit binding bids by the 24 March deadline.

The bid deadline has been deferred a number of times, with the main stumbling block being semi-autonomous privatisation fund Taiped's insistence for a EUR180m investment figure over seven years for any concession holder, a sum many deem as high. The investment stipulation, combined with the country risk, reportedly makes financing of the privatisation more expensive.

Another "thorn" is a clause in the concession contract mandating a specific increase in port volume, something deemed unrealistic in the current economic situation.