RIGA - A third proposal submitted for the purchase of the state's stake in the Ventspils Nafta oil terminal may give the government the necessary impetus to finally make a decision on the sale of the company, Economy Minister Juris Lujans said Jan. 11.
The Geneva-based Vitol Group recently became the third party to inquire about acquiring the state's 38.6 percent stake in Ventspils Nafta. The first two were the U.S. investment company BroadStreet Group and two local individuals.
Contrary to the other two bidders, Vitol Group has not yet stated the price it would be willing to pay for the oil terminal, but company president Ian Taylor has proposed a meeting with government officials to discuss the offer.
"I perceive it as a good signal...and maybe this will become the impetus for the government to finally decide on a sell-off," said Lujans, adding he could not guess as to when the government was likely to discuss the matter.
Finance Minister Valdis Dombrovskis said that a decision to sell the state's holdings in Ventspils Nafta was a political one, and he did not see "any fundamental political obstacles" to the sale.
Transportation Minister Roberts Zile also said he did not see any reason why the state should keep the Ventspils Nafta shares. He reiterated that, in light of the heightened interest in the terminal's privatization, the best way to dispose of the state-held shares would be to hold an auction.
"What's the point in keeping [the Ventspils Nafta shares]? The company's results have only deteriorated in recent years, and if there's a chance both to improve the company's performance and to earn some money for the state, why not?" Zile said.
The Vitol Group said in its letter to Latvian Prime Minister Einars Repse that it was founded in 1966 and has become the world's largest independent oil product trader with annual revenues over $20 billion.
The group sells more than three million barrels of oil daily, and it is already shipping some 1.2 million tons of oil and oil products through Latvia's northwestern port of Ventspils.
Vitol Group has holdings in a number of oil terminals and refineries in Russia's Kaliningrad region, the UAE, India, China, Argentina and Africa.
In recent weeks rumors have been running high about a change in ownership in Ventspils Nafta, especially after the company's reorganization.
