Estonian government holds off selling stake in Port of Tallinn
The Estonian government has decided not to move forward with selling its stake in the Port of Tallinn, saying the timing just isn't right for now.
The government's economic cabinet reviewed the potential sale of the state's 67 percent stake in the listed port authority on Thursday. Minister of Infrastructure Kuldar Leis (Reform) told ERR that the cabinet concluded the timing isn't yet suitable.
"We had an agreement within the government to bring the topic of selling the Port of Tallinn shares to the cabinet early this year," Leis said, adding that the idea was to see whether it was a good time to sell or not. "It turned out that the time is not yet ripe, because the Port of Tallinn's development projects are still in their early stages."
Leis noted that Thursday's conclusion doesn't prevent the government from revisiting the decision quickly if needed.
"We did not set a date for revisiting the topic," he said. "It could be in six months' time or later."
Last October, Finance Minister Jürgen Ligi (Reform) proposed reducing the Estonian government's stake in the Port of Tallinn (AS Tallinna Sadam) from 67 percent to 51 percent.
Tallinn city government recently submitted detailed plans for two major Port of Tallinn real estate projects — the A-terminal and D-terminal areas at Old City Harbor — to the city council for review.
Port of Tallinn CEO Valdo Kalm said the new €30 million A-terminal could be completed within a few years. The remaining real estate developments, he added, could take more than a decade to finish.
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Editor: Mari Peegel, Marko Tooming, Aili Vahtla
