Azerbaijan's state energy company Socar is running into problems concerning its stake in Greece's natural gas grid operator, Desfa, with the Greek parliament expected to vote imminently for a crucial change concerning the value of Desfa.
As a result, Socar is expected to send a delegation of senior officials to hold talks in Athens this week. They will address two main problems. The first concerns the size of Socar's stake in Desfa. The second – which is both far more important and far more complex – concerns the methodology of accounting within Desfa.
The first point is relatively straightforward. When Socar won the tender to acquire a 66% stake in Desfa for €400mn in June 2013, purchasing a 35% stake from Hellenic Petroleum and a 31% stake from Greek government, it had strong EU backing, not least because the leading alternative bidder was a Russian company, Sintez. At the time, the EU was also worried that Gazprom would seek to purchase Desfa's parent company, Depa, the Greek natural gas supply company. In the event, however, nobody bid for Depa and only Socar bid for Desfa.
As a result, Socar is expected to send a delegation of senior officials to hold talks in Athens this week. They will address two main problems. The first concerns the size of Socar's stake in Desfa. The second – which is both far more important and far more complex – concerns the methodology of accounting within Desfa.
The first point is relatively straightforward. When Socar won the tender to acquire a 66% stake in Desfa for €400mn in June 2013, purchasing a 35% stake from Hellenic Petroleum and a 31% stake from Greek government, it had strong EU backing, not least because the leading alternative bidder was a Russian company, Sintez. At the time, the EU was also worried that Gazprom would seek to purchase Desfa's parent company, Depa, the Greek natural gas supply company. In the event, however, nobody bid for Depa and only Socar bid for Desfa.
