Sintez Group is considering bringing a foreign partner into its bid to buy Greek gas utility DEPA and its gas distribution subsidiary DESFA in order to allay concerns over excessive Russian control over Greece's energy market, Sintez chief Andrey Korolev said in an interview with The Wall Street Journal.
"The sale of DEPA is a flagship for Greece's European Union-backed privatization drive, aimed at bolstering the country's finances and paying off debt," the WSJ reported. "But the sale comes as the EU is pushing to reduce Russian involvement on Europe's energy markets, and Western officials have raised concerns with Athens over the bids by privately owned Sintez and Russia's state-controlled Gazprom."
(MT)
