TAIPED must alter schedule for sell-offs to make targets
State sell-off fund TAIPED will need to revise its plan for the utilization of public properties, as a target for the collection of 2.5 billion euros from privatizations within 2016 is seen as unattainable.
Even if significant, politically sensitive projects are accelerated, such as the sale of a 17 percent stake in Public Power Corporation, it is doubtful whether they will be completed by the end of the year, let alone be paid for in time.
TAIPED has been authorized to collect 5.8 billion euros in total up to 2018. This breaks down into 2.5 billion for this year, 2.2 billion in 2017 and 1.1 billion euros in 2018.
The solution likely to be sought will be a compromise with the country’s creditors for the collection of 2 billion euros, as the TAIPED chairman has said, and the deferral of the remaining 500,000 euros to the next couple of years. This is certain to be accepted, though it may not be attainable in practice anyway. That’s because the broader economic conditions may not be the best possible for the sale of holdings such as those in PPC or the Public Gas Corporation (DEPA) and will have to be scheduled for end-September.
