Financial advisors line up for the TAROM privatisation

Published: 10/14/1999

Dutch bank, ABN Amro and Credit Commercial de France (CCF) will submit offers for advising on the privatization of the national carrier, Tarom. Credit Commercial de France will team up with Hall Dickler and PricewaterhouseCoopers, while the ABN Amro consortium has not been officially designated yet. The Ministry of Transport expects the offers by 22nd October. The CCF team will be led by Christian Blanc, former Chief Executive of Air France. CCF has acted as a consultant in the privatization of Romcim,the state owned cement company, with Lafarge, and on the preparation of the Romanian Development Bank for sell-off. The State Ownership Fund has entrusted it with other seven companies to privatize. CCF has also helped Tarom replace its old Antonov 24s, at a cost estimated to be $40m.ABN Amro is advising on the privatisation of Petrom and SNTR, the national tobacco company. The successful investment bank will be paid in part from a public institutional building loan made by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). According to Gheorghe Racaru, General Manager of Tarom, The privatization is likely to be “a mix of investors - a strategic investor such as another airline company and shares sold on the domestic and international stock markets”. I hope that 10 to 15 per cent of shares can be sold on the local stock exchange." He added that unofficial talks have taken place at top management level with a range of international airlines such as KLM, Austrian Airlines and Lufthansa for the role of strategic partner.

Article ID: 977