Greece's national power utility PPC will launch the sale of a stake in its power transmission network operator ADMIE by the end of June 2016, to comply with the terms of a third international bailout (selling up to 24% in ADMIE and reducing the share of PPC on the retail market from the current 95% to 50%).
The launch of the tender will be approved by PPC's general assembly and the tender will be published a few days later; it is expected to be concluded by mid-October 2016.
In July 2014, the previous government passed a reform bill paving the way for the privatisation of a up to 30% stake in national power utility Public Power Corp (PPC, 51% state-owned) in 2015, spurring massive demonstrations and strikes in the company and leading to brief power outages. The privatisation was part of the country's efforts to liberalise its energy market, as required by the European Union and the IMF to disburse the next tranche of a €240bn bailout programme. Privatisation plans, which also included oil refinery Hellenic Petroleum, national gas company DEPA (65% stake to be privatised) and power transmission grid ADMIE, were frozen by a new government in January 2015. In October 2015, Greece agreed to start the privatisation of 66% of ADMIE or to find alternative options to open up its electricity market and to divest a 17% stake in national power utility PPC (in 2016).