Greece invites bids in privatization of railway company TRAINOSE

Greece formally invited on Friday potential investors to bid in the privatization of the country's state-controlled railway operator TRAINOSE, the Hellenic Republic Asset Development Fund (HRADF) announced. The deadline for interested parties to submit binding offers for the acquisition of 100 percent of TRAINOSE's share capital in the first phase of the international tender expires on September 16, 2013. The announcement came as Athens has lowered targets for raising revenues via the privatization program this year from the initial 2.6 billion euros (billion U.S. dollars) to about one billion euros due to setbacks, such as the fruitless tendering for the sale of gas firm DEPA in June. In 2010, when Greece launched the austerity and reform program to address the threatening debt crisis with the support of international lenders, under bailout deals pledged to raise approximately 50 billion euros through the sale or lease of state assets by 2015. Ever since the target has been gradually lowered to about a third of the initial amount. (1 euro = 1.3 U.S. dollars)