Romanian govt pledges privatization of CFR Marfa and Tarom by July

Newsroom 23/01/2013 | 11:37

Romania agreed during negotiations with the IMF to sell a majority stake of 51 percent in the railway freight operator CFR Marfa and a minority stake of 20 percent in airline company Tarom by July, according to Transport minister Relu Fenechiu.

The minister said the two companies will be sold to international investors in the next six months starting February.

“We discussed the absorption of EU funds and the restructuring of loss-making companies,” said Fenechiu after the official meeting with the IMF, according to Agerpres newswire.

Fenechiu said that only through the sale of a controlling stake, is CFR Marfa going to recover, although he doesn’t favor this option.

State-owned companies within the Transport Ministry will appoint private managers in the next 90 days, stated the minister. He added these companies will not go through a restructuring process, which may lead to job losses.