The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), which claims ownership of Moldova’s main sea-to-river port, Giurgiulesti International Free Port (PILG), announced that it has launched “a structured mergers and acquisitions (M&A) process through an international tender” to identify potential strategic and financial investors who can further support the successful long-term development of the strategic asset for Moldova.

The deal will not be straightforward as many conflicting interests are at stake. PILG’s operator has always been owned by offshore companies, was traded in obscure confidential transactions and its operations have been subject to regulations frequently amended by authorities without public consultations.

In 2023, Romania’s government expressed its interest in taking over the port, which is also being contested in court by Azeri investor Rafiq (also known as Rafig or Rafik) Alyiev. Bemol, Alyiev’s company, seized the port’s assets in court in 2022 and a final ruling on final ownership is expected soon. Politico reports Bemol hired a lobbying firm close to the Trump Administration to handle the claim.

Separately, then-minister of infrastructure Andrei Spinu said in 2023 that Moldova was not happy with the 99-year concession contract signed for PILG and wanted it amended. In any case, the sale of PILG cannot take place without the consultation of the Moldovan government, he stressed in 2023, commenting on the talks between the EBRD and the government of Romania.

Moldovan President Maia Sandu said in 2023 that the sale of the port by the EBRD will only be cleared after the case involving Alyiev and Moser is closed.

In its April 14 press release on seeking investors for PILG, the EBRD superficially mentions legal complications in the past, implying that they are no longer relevant and that the bank is “the sole ultimate owner of Danube Logistics SRL, the operator of the port”.

The EBRD said that “the [sale] process [of PILG] is being conducted in full coordination with the government of Moldova”, including on the future commercial and legal framework of the port, aimed at facilitating inward investments in full alignment with international best practices and standards for the sector. The EBRD is reportedly being advised on the M&A process by Raiffeisen Bank.

In 2021, EBRD took over the Cyprus-based investment vehicle Thomo Invest, which in turn owns Danube Logistics (Moldova), the owner, general investor and operator of PILG, through two Dutch-registered intermediaries under a contract signed with the government of Moldova in 2004. 

The seller was the former EBRD banker Thomas Moser, who acquired control of PILG from its original owner, Aliyev, under obscure circumstances (Moser operated as both seller and buyer) in 2011.

Aliyev claims that Moser took over the port in a fraudulent operation in 2011 and then sold it to the EBRD three months after a court in Moldova gave Bemol a €9mn award in February 2022 in its case against Moser. Notably, Bemol’s €9mn final award is not linked to the allegedly fraudulent acquisition of Danube Logistics by Moser but regards losses incurred by Moser to Bemol Retail in his position as manager (supposedly including the asset transfer). In June 2022, the investigating judge authorised the seizure of over €7.5mn of assets that form the share capital of Danube Logistics.

In September 2024, Moldova’s Prosecutor's Office for Combating Organised Crime and Special Cases responded to a press request, announcing that the investigation into the takeover of the PILG was nearing completion.