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Snam likely to make offer to SOCAR for 17 percent stake in DESFA by early October, says Greece

22 July 2016 11:39 (UTC +04:00)

Baku – APA-Economics. The sale of Greece’s natural-gas grid operator DESFA to continue unhindered, with Italy’s Snam SpA likely to make an offer to Azerbaijan’s State Oil Company (SOCAR) for a 17 percent stake by the end of September or early October said Stergios Pitsiorlas, chairman of the Hellenic Republic Asset Development Fund (HRADF), Bloomberg reported.

Greece must find a mutually-acceptable agreement with Snam and Socar on usage fees for the grid network, according to Pitsiorlas.

SOCAR won a tender in 2013 on the purchase of a 66-percent stake in DESFA for 400 million euros.

The European Commission started an inquiry into the compliance of the DESFA deal with the EU regulations in November 2014. Currently, the deal is being considered by the European Commission's Directorate-General for Competition.

In December 2013, SOCAR and Greece's state privatization fund and Petroleum companies signed a contract on Shareholders and the Share Purchase Agreement (SPA). SOCAR purchases a 31% stake of DESFA from the Greek government, and a 35% stake from Hellenic Petroleum SA.

Snam will acquire 17 percent of SOCAR's 66-percent share in DESFA, HRADF chairman Stergios Pitsiorlas said earlier.