CFR Marfă is the state-owned freight railway business of

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, a ...

. Formerly the freight division of

Căile Ferate Române Căile Ferate Române (; abbreviated as the CFR) is the state railway carrier of Romania. As of 2014, the railway network of Romania consists of , of which (37.4%) are electrified. The total track length is , of which (38.5%) are electrifie ...

(CFR), it was separated in 1998 to become a semi-independent business. In April 2013, under pressure from the IMF to reform the state sector, the Romanian government offered to sell a 51% stake in CFR Marfă In May 2013, three bids were received; from

OmniTRAX OmniTRAX, Inc. is a transportation and transportation infrastructure holding company based in Denver, Colorado, in the United States. It primarily owns or operates railroads, with a network of 25 regional and shortline railroads in 12 U.S. states ...

, SC Grup Feroviar Român, and a partnership between Transferoviar Grup and Donau-Finanz. The government rejected all three bids. In September 2013, the 51% stake in CFR Marfă was sold to

Grup Feroviar Român Grup Feroviar Român, or simply GFR, is the largest private railway company in Romania and one of the largest in South Eastern Europe. Founded in 2001, the company owns freight operations in Romania, Hungary, Bulgaria, Greece Serbia, Ukraine, Moldo ...

for €202 million, although complete payment would be deferred until the deal is approved by competition authorities. CFR Marfă is making heavy losses. In 2013, it expects to lose €47 million; it lost €20 million in 2012 on earnings of €288.8 million. It has not posted a profit since 2007. As part of the privatisation, the Romanian government has allocated CFR Marfă 606 million lei (€137 million) of rail infrastructure debts.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:CFR Marfa Railway companies of Romania Railway companies established in 1998 1998 establishments in Romania Căile Ferate Române Companies based in Bucharest

See also

References