Dan Diaconescu has won the bid in the Oltchim privatization, with an offer worth RON 203 million (just under EUR 45 million at today's exchange rate). All four offers handed in to the Office of State Ownership and Privatization in Industry (OPSPI) yesterday (September 20 ) were accepted, so an open competitive auction decided the result.

Romania's Prime Minister did not rule out an inconclusive result ahead of the open auction, which would have resulted in Oltchim coming under special administration, but with a winner decided today, it appears that for now at least the Oltchim privatization has been finalized.

The original deadline for offers was September 17, but Russian energy firm Gazprom asked for an extension. In the end, Gazprom did not enter a bid and the same three bidders who had submitted offers before the previous deadline participated again. Media mogul Dan Diaconescu (in picture), whose offer was submitted ten minutes late, said he had doubled his previous offer and now had a foreign backer. Diaconescu also described his offer as a birthday surprise for PM Victor Ponta, who turned 40 yesterday.

The other participants in today's auction were PCC SE, a company registered in Germany and already a minority shareholder in Oltchim and Businessman Stefan Vuza, who made two offers via Chimcomplex and Aisa Invest. He said the offers made had been improved since Monday.

Romania’s Government approved earlier in August the privatization strategy for Oltchim Ramnicu Valcea, where the state will sell the 54.8 percent package it owns in the company, as well as the debt package held by AVAS, worth some EUR 400 million.

Liam Lever, liam@romania-insider.com