Greece’s Attica group joins the bidding for SNCM

Greece’s Attica group, parent of Superfast Ferries and Blue Star Ferries, is understood to have joined the bidding for French Mediterranean ferry operator SNCM.

There was no immediate confirmation from Attica but SNCM announced this afternoon that an unnamed Greek company had submitted a bid.

The court-appointed administrators in charge of the company’s affairs said that they had received five firm offers for the company and two letters of intent following the expiry of the extended deadline for offers on Monday.

The three declared bidders are: the Mexican ferry company Baja Ferries, headed by Franco-Tunisian businessman Daniel Berrebi, a group of investors led by former chairman of the port of Marseilles, Christian Garin, and Corsican transport company boss Patrick Rocca.

Other potential bidders, according to French press reports, are Swiss businessman Paul Moulia and, in addition to Attica, another unidentified Greek company.

SNCM said yesterday that all the bids were for the whole of the company’s activities, comprising its Corsican and North African ferry businesses, but that all were conditional on approvals from the European Commission, the Corsican authorities, and the Marseilles court of commerce.

It added that important discussions also needed to take place with representatives of the company’s 1,500-strong permanent workforce. These would start, it said, in the next few days.

source:ihsmaritime360