Offers for consultancy services on CFR Marfă’s privatisation can be submitted by March 12

On February 6, the Romanian Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure published the announcement of the inquiry for consultancy services on  CFR Marfă’s privatisation.
Thus, the ministry expects for offers from the short list of candidates by February 16 and the short list of pre-selected bidders will then be published on the web site of the ministry by February 21. Final offers will be submitted until March 12.
The consultancy services delivered to the transport ministry by the selected consultant will have to include, among main activities, the evaluation of the investment intent by the consultant in stakes issued by CFR Marfă, the elaboration by the consultant of the proposals on CFR Marfă’s privatisation strategy (based on preliminary diagnosis analyses) to be approved by the Transport Ministry and the Romanian Government, as well as specialized assistance in the elaboration and approval of the draft law regarding the Government’s approval of the privatisation strategy of the national freight transport operator. The services package will also have to include CFR Marfă’s evaluation for establishing the market cost of the stakes. The ministry plans to select an international consultant, such as an investment bank or a consultancy company with experience in acquisitions and privatisation.
For further details on the announcement published by MTI and on the requirements that consultancy companies willing to submit offers have to meet, you can access the ministry’s website http://www.mt.ro/CFR%20marfa%20Consultant.pdf (for both the Romanian and the English version).

We recall that in September 2011, in the letter of intent signed by the Romanian Government and the IMF, CFR Marfă was included in the group of the first nine companies to have a private manager with the possibility to sell a package of 20% of stakes, after in August, the Supreme Council of National Defence warned that CFR Marfă’s privatisation could have implications on the national safety since the state company had a market share of around 50% in 2010 which continued to drop in 2011.
In December 2011, the Romanian Government and the IMF agreed that CFR Marfă should be removed from the list of private management companies and sold to a strategic investor.
The state will publish the stake selling prospect by mid-June 2012 and will conclude the privatisation process until the end of October 2012, according to the data published in December 2011. In 2011, CFR Marfă recorded losses of RON 133.5 Million, in 2010, the company’s losses amounted to RON 354.2 Million (EUR 86.6 Million), in 2009, RON 341.95 Million (EUR 78 Million) and in 2008, RON 169.44 Million (around EUR 40 Million).
2007 was the last profitable year for the operator, the operator’s profit amounting to RON 13 Million (EUR 3 Million).
In the draft budget for 2012, CFR Marfă estimates losses of RON 95 Million (around EUR 22 Million).