{"id":106660,"date":"2024-08-12T19:23:09","date_gmt":"2024-08-12T09:23:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.railfreight.com\/?p=55256"},"modified":"2024-08-12T19:23:09","modified_gmt":"2024-08-12T09:23:09","slug":"sale-of-operail-enters-final-stage","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/?p=106660","title":{"rendered":"Sale of Operail enters final stage"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Estonian government approved the beginning of the second and final phase of the sale of the state-owned rail freight operator Operail. Interesting parties can now submit biding offers out of which the company\u2019s next owner will surface.<\/strong>
\n<\/span>The main reason behind Operail\u2019s privatisation is that \u201ccargo transport is not a strategically important activity for the state\u201d, according to the country\u2019s Minister of Infrastructure Vladimir Svet. The first announcement of a full privatisation<\/a> was made in February 2024. The initiative was then officialised<\/a> by the Estonian government in June with the beginning of a public auction, with interested parties submitting non-binding offers.<\/p>\n

Operail struggling over the past two years<\/h2>\n

Operail has been struggling to remain afloat since the introduction of sanctions<\/a> placed by the European Union on Russia and Belarus in 2022 in the context of the war in Ukraine. By September of that year, the company had halved its international volumes and laid off over 100 workers.<\/p>\n