PricewaterhouseCoopers, Ernst&Young, as well as two other consortia, formed of Boston Consulting Group, Horvath &Partners and Bostina si Asociatii and Roland Berger and Nestor Nestor Diculescu Kingston Petersen, respectively filed bids to help with the sale.
The consultancy agreement is subject to government approval, the ministry said.
Romania plans to sell its majority stake in the rail operator by the end of October, “possibly with the support of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and of the International Financial Corporation,” according to the country’s latest letter of intent to a EUR3.6 billion loan agreement with the International Monetary Fund.
CFR Marfa is the tenth-largest freight rail operator in Europe, with total transport volume of 31 million tons in 2011.
The company posted a loss of 133.5 million lei (EUR30.5 million) in 2011, narrower from RON535.3 million in the previous year, preliminary financial data showed. CFR Marfa has total debts worth RON1.25 billion (EUR286 million) and employs 8,270 staff. (EUR1=RON4.3696)