Ajerbaijan's SOCAR committed to buy Greek gas grid DESFA

Business

15:58 | 22.03.2016

Ajerbaijan's SOCAR committed to buy Greek gas grid DESFA

Azerbaijan's state energy firm SOCAR said on Tuesday it is committed to buying Greece's natural gas grid operator DESFA and wants to finalise the deal in the near future.

SOCAR clinched a deal in 2013 to buy a 66 percent stake in DESFA for 400 million euros ($448.3 million) but European Union antitrust concerns have delayed the transaction.

SOCAR has said it would seek to divest about 17 percent of DESFA to a third party to address the EU concerns, after the acquisition is completed.

"Socar is committed to its continuation of acquiring the shares of DESFA," Chief Executive of Socar Energy-Greece Anar Mammadov told an energy conference in Athens, looking forward to finalising the deal in the near future.

Greece's privatisation agency has said that Belgium's Fluxys FLUX.BR, Italy's Snam SRG.MI and Spain's Enagas ENAG.MC were interested in buying the stake from SOCAR.

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