Romanians want to open negotiations for the acquisition of HŽ Cargo as soon as possible

The Romanian railway giant Grampet Group hopes to start negotiations with the Croatian government in September regarding the acquisition of HŽ Cargo. Grampet’s spokesperson, Oana Popescu, stated on Tuesday in Zagreb that the company wants to begin the consolidation of HŽ into Grampet as soon as possible, which is currently undergoing a strong privatization push.

In addition to Croatia, Grampet is also attempting to acquire the largest railway operator in Romania and Bulgaria, thereby closing a vast transport loop from the North to the Black Sea and finally to the Adriatic. Grampet has the best prospects in Croatia, as privatization in Bulgaria is currently suspended, while the process in Romania is being slowed down by a local political crisis.

Grampet believes it is the best candidate for the acquisition of HŽ Cargo because it operates in almost all regional markets, understands local specifics, and wants the government and Croatian unions to be partners in the privatization.

“HŽ Cargo has good transport infrastructure, but it urgently needs modernization. Grampet will provide funds for modernization, and perhaps some local companies will participate in it, but it is still too early to talk about that. It is also too early to say whether there will be Croats in management after the acquisition of HŽ Cargo, but we are very aware that without local expertise we will not be able to be efficient,” said Popescu.

Grampet also does not hide that there will be layoffs at HŽ Cargo, but they hope for understanding and good dialogue with the unions.

“Restructuring will be a difficult and expensive job,” Popescu clarified.

Grampet currently operates on more than 10,000 kilometers of transport routes with its own 400 locomotives and more than 16,000 wagons. Their long-term goal is to close the mentioned triangle of the North-Black-Adriatic Sea, which would achieve numerous savings and prevent wagons from traveling empty. Popescu adds that she is convinced that the new cycle of economic growth in the European Union will be strongly linked to Asia, from which Grampet can significantly benefit.

This is a private company almost entirely owned by Romanian entrepreneur Gruie Stoica, which achieved a turnover of half a billion euros and a profit of 28 million euros last year.