We hope the government will expedite the process as much as possible, a Grampet source said, adding that there was no deadline for the privatisation but that HZ Cargo was constantly risking insolvency, which would be an aggravating circumstance.
Grampet said that when the Croatian government delivered a draft privatisation contract in October, Grampet asked for additional explanations, which arrived in late November but did not answer all the questions that had been made.
The government has said that negotiations are under way and that they should wrap up soon.
Grampet is especially interested in the property HZ Cargo owns, the status of the Agit company in the privatisation process, the provision for surplus labour and the lawsuits HZ Cargo is involved in.
The Romanians said their giving up on HZ Cargo was out of the question but that they wanted to clarify with the Croatian government what exactly they were buying.
As for reports that Friday was decision day, when Grampet might even pull out of the deal, its source said he knew nothing about that but that the Romanian company expected the outstanding issues to be cleared up in the next few days.
This is not a watershed moment but it is certainly important, the source said, adding that Grampet would not automatically pull out even if it did not like the Croatian government's answers.
Croatia's rail market is open and liberalised, and Grampet can operate on it even without buying HZ Cargo, but buying HZ Cargo is a very important part of its regional strategy, the source said.
Ferovia, a company within the Grampet Group, was chosen at a tender for the purchase of a 75% stake in HZ Cargo. Under the tender terms, the buyer must take over all the liabilities and guarantees, which amount to HRK 800 million, and immediately invest EUR 30 million to provide for the workers, some of whom are to be laid off, and in train upgrading.
(EUR 1 = HRK 7.6)