List of privatizations

This list of privatizations provides links to notable and/or major privatizations. "See also: Privatization".

Privatizations by country

Argentina

* Aerolíneas Argentinas, the former national carrier
* ENTel (national telecommunications company) - partitioned and sold to France Télécom and to Spanish Telefónica
* Buenos Aires Metro, given under concession but still owned by the State
* Empresa Nacional de Correos y Telégrafos (ENCoTel), given under concession as Correo Argentino. Re-nationalized in 2003
* Obras Sanitarias (water-company), given as a concession to the French conglomerate Suez, which operates it under the name "Aguas Argentinas". Re-nationalized in 2006 as Aguas y Saneamientos Argentinos (AySA).
* Fábrica Militar de Aviones (FMA), sold to Lockheed Martin
* Ferrocarriles Argentinos, railway-lines all over the country (some in the process of re-nationalization under the Kirchner administration)
* Yacimientos Petrolíferos Fiscales (YPF), national oil-company sold to the Spanish Repsol. The Argentinian government in 2004 set up a new state oil company (Enarsa) from scratch.
* Gas del Estado, national gas company partitioned and sold, among others, to the Spanish Gas Natural.
* Agua y Energía Eléctrica, national electricity-production company. Partitioned and sold.

Australia

* Qantas
* Commonwealth Bank of Australia
* Telstra
* Commonwealth Serum Laboratories
* Commonwealth Industrial Gases
* Commonwealth Oil Refineries
* Electricity and natural gas supply companies in Victoria
* State-owned betting-agencies in most States
* Many long-distance and urban passenger railway services
* All freight railway services except Queensland Rail
* Public transport in Melbourne
* Most State-owned banks
* Government Printing Service (New South Wales)
* Government Cleaning Service (New South Wales)
* Government Insurance Office in New South Wales
* Sydney Airport

Bahrain

*Bahrain Telecommunications Co. (Q1 2005, $800 million)

Brazil

* Telebrás
* Embratel
* RFFSA
* Vale do Rio Doce
* CSN

Canada

* 407 ETR
* Air Canada
* Canadian National Railway
* Manitoba Telecom Services (MTS)
* Nova Scotia Power
* Ontario Hydro (only partially privatized, Ontario Power Generation remains a crown corporation)
* Petro-Canada
* Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan
* Saskatchewan Wheat Pool
* Teleglobe - An international telco carrier.
* Telus, formerly Alberta Government Telephones
* Uranium industry in Saskatchewan

Czechoslovakia

* Virtually everything after the Velvet Revolution in 1989. See voucher privatization in Czechoslovakia for details.

Finland

* Finnair
* Sonera (former Telecom Finland)

France

*Credit Lyonnais (a bank - privatized in 2001)
*France Télécom (the French State has owned under 50% of France Télécom since September 2004)
*Snecma (in 2004 France sold 35% of Snecma for €1.45 billion)
*Pages Jaunes (Yellow Pages) (in 2004 France sold 32% of Pages Jaunes for €1.25 billion)
*SNCM ("Société Nationale Maritime Corse Méditerranée") ferry-company. Privatized at the end of 2005.
*Électricité de France (EDF) (in December 2005 France sold 30% of EDF)
*Gaz de France (GDF) Prime minister Dominique de Villepin announced a merger between GDF and Suez; since the state owns 80% of GDF, a privatization of GDF would require the passing of a new law; the state would control only 34% of the capital of the new group: see [http://www.humanite.fr/journal/2006-02-28/2006-02-28-825123 commentary] .

Germany

* "Deutsche Bundespost" became
** Deutsche Post Jan. 2005 - KfW buys 12% (€1.7 billion) to [http://news.ft.com/cms/s/e2a4ae9c-5d6d-11d9-ac01-00000e2511c8.html sell to public] .
** Deutsche Telekom
** Deutsche Postbank (in 2004 the state floated a minority stake for €2.5 billion)
* "Deutsche Bundesbahn" became Deutsche Bahn in 1994
* UFA underwent privatization in 1921

Greece

* "OTE (Οργανισμός Τηλεπικοινωνιών Ελλάδος/Hellenic Telecommunications Company)" became partly privatised in the 1990s, when its only shareholder at the time, the Hellenic State, reduced its share of the company to 36%
* "Olympic Airways" at first, then "Olympic Airlines". The Hellenic State attempted to privatise the ailing airlines five times, more or less, from 2004 onwards.

Hong Kong

*Mass Transit Railway Corporation (Renamed MTR Corporation Limited)
*The Link REIT

India

* Maruti Udyog
* BSNL
* Delhi Airport
* Mumbai Airport
* Hyderabad International Airport
* Bangalore International Airport
* Cochin International Airport
* Many others including sporting associations, airports, tv channels, etc which were all originally government-run businesses, but were privatised by Prime Minister P. V. Narasimha Rao, which not only removed a financial burden of the government, but also revolutionised business in India. This was so, because privatising many different areas, guaranteed that the company which bought whatever was privatised, made "sure" that it would run well so they could make the most profit. Examples of this include the airports listed above which, all private, are being modernised and redeveloped to international quality.

Iran

"See: Privatization in Iran"

Iraq

* (planned) most industries except oil, at the behest of the United States sponsored government.

= Ireland=

* Irish Steel - transferred ownership to Ispat, firm bankrupt, no longer exists.
* Irish Sugar - floated on stock market as Greencore. State retains one share for veto purposes.
* British and Irish Steampacket Company Limited - sold to Irish Continental
* Telecom Éireann - floated on the stock market
* Cablelink - sold to NTL Ireland. Formerly held 50/50 by Telecom Eireann and Radio Telefis Eireann, both state-owned at the time.
* Aer Lingus - floated on the stock market. State retains 25%
* Irish Life - sold to Irish Permanent
* TSB Bank - sold to Irish Life & Permanent
* ACCBank - sold to Rabobank
* ICC Bank - sold to Bank of Scotland
* Irish National Petroleum Corporation - all assets sold to ConocoPhillips, still exists in law
* Nítrigin Éireann - sold to its other shareholder in Irish Fertiliser Industries, Richardsons, final firm called IFI, no longer exists.

Israel

* El Al
* Zim Integrated Shipping Services
* Israel Discount Bank (partial)
* Bank Hapoalim
* Bank Leumi (partial)
* Israel Chemicals
* Bezeq
* RAFAEL Armament Development Authority (partial)

Italy

* Enel S.p.A. (1999 32% €16.6 billion, 2003 6.6% €2.2 billion, 2004 20% €7.5 billion) ( [http://pepei.pennnet.com/News/Display_News_Story.cfm?Section=WireNews&Category=HOME&NewsID=109120] )
* Terna (Enel sold 43.5% for €1.48 billion in June 2004) ( [http://investmentsmagazine.com/ManageArticle.asp?C=20&A=7578] )

Jordan

* Aramex International (Q1 2005, 75% for $150-200 million)

Japan

* Nippon Telegraph and Telephone
* Japan Post (half-privatized)
* Japan Tobacco
* Japan Railways Group (formerly Japanese National Railways)

Korea

* Korea Telecom
* Korea Electric Power (KEPCO; half-privatized)
* KT&G (Korea Tobacco & Ginseng)
* KOGAS
* POSCO (Pohang Iron & Steel)

Kuwait

* Kuwait Finance House (November 2004, 25% of the company for $1 billion)

Malaysia

* PosMalaysia - national postal services
* Telekom Malaysia
* Tenaga National Berhad - national electricity-generation and distribution
* Johor Water Corporation
* Pasir Gudang Local Authority
* Malaysia Airlines
* Keretapi Tanah Melaya Berhad - national railway company
* Senai International Airport
* Malaysian Airports Holding

Netherlands

* PTT, the mail and telecom company
* Nederlandse Spoorwegen

New Zealand

"For more, see also:" State-Owned Enterprises of New Zealand and Rogernomics
* Air New Zealand, privatized in 1989, subsequently rescued by the Crown in 2001
* Auckland International Airport
* Bank of New Zealand - semi-privatized in 1987; rescued by the Crown in 1990; sold off in 1992
* Electricity Corporation of New Zealand (ECNZ) - part of which became privatized as Contact Energy in the period 1995 - 1998
* Government Print
* Ministry of Works and Development
* Natural Gas Corporation (NGC), ultimately absorbed into Vector Limited
* New Zealand Steel, privatized from 1987, now part of BlueScope Steel
* The Post Office Savings Bank (POSB), bought by the ANZ bank in 1989
* Telecom New Zealand, privatized in 1990
* New Zealand Rail Limited, privatized in 1993, became Tranz Rail Limited in 1995 - Government subsequently repurchased the track lease
* various council-controlled organisations formerly owned by territorial authorities: see also Local Authority Trading Enterprises (LATEs)

Norway

* Arcus (sold to Sucra in 2001)
* Statkorn (floated on the stock market as Cermaq in 2000, Government retains 44%)
* Christiania Bank og Kreditkasse (sold to Nordea in 2000)
* DnB NOR (floated on the stock market in 1995, Government retains 34%)
* Finnmark Fylkesrederi (sold to Veolia Transport Norway in 2003)
* Fredrikstad Energi (49% sold to Fortum)
* Kongsberg Gruppen (floated on the stock market in 1993, Government retains 50%)
* Norsk Medisinaldepot (sold to Celesio in 2001)
* NSB Gods (now CargoNet, partially sold to Green Cargo in 2002, NSB retains 55%)
* Oslo Energi (parts merged with Hafslund)
* Postbanken (merged with DnB NOR in 1999)
* Statoil (floated on the stock market in 2001, Government retains 71%)
* Telenor (floated on the stock market in 2000, Government retains 54%)
* TrønderBilene (66% sold to Fosen Trafikklag in 1999)
* Østfold Energi (parts sold to Fortum in 2001)
* Årdal og Sunndal Verk (merged with Norsk Hydro in 1986)

Pakistan

* National Refinery Limited (acquired by Attock Group of Companies in July 2005)

Poland

* Telekomunikacja Polska S.A.

Qatar

* Q-Gas (Q1 2005, 50% for $600 million)

Romania

* Electrica - electricity distributor
* Petrom - national petroleum company
* Romtelecom - national telecommunications company
* Sidex - steelworks

Russia

* Gazprom (1994)
* LUKoil (1995)
* Mechel (1995)
* MMC Norilsk Nickel (1995)
* Novolipetsk Steel (1995)
* Surgutneftegaz (1995)
* YUKOS (1995)

Saudi Arabia

* Al-Bilad Bank (November 2004, 50% valued at $400 million)

Singapore

*Port of Singapore Authority (1997)
*Post Office Savings Bank (bought by DBS Bank in 1998 and rebranded as POSBank)
*Singapore Broadcasting Corporation (1994, as the Television Corporation of Singapore; later renamed MediaCorp in 2001)
*Singapore Post
*Singapore Power
*Singapore Telecommunications (1992)

Spain

* Iberia Airlines (2001)
* (SEAT|1986)

Sweden [Munkhammar, J. "Försäljning av statliga bolag under tre decennier", Timbro, 2007, http://www.timbro.se/bokhandel/pdf/000022.pdf]

1980s

* ASEA-ATOM (1981) - sold to Asea
* Luxor AB (1984)
* SSAB (1986-1994)
* UV Shipping (1988)

1990s

*SAKAB
*SSAB (wholly privatised in 1994)
*Svalöf
*Swedish Real Estate Valuation Corp
*Celsius
*Cementa
*AssiDomän
*OKPetroleum
*Pharmacia
*SEMKO
*Nordbanken (partial)
*Industrikredit AB
*SBL Vaccin
*Stadshypotek AB
*Enator
*PharmaciaUpjohn
*SAQ Kontrol
*VPC AB
*Företagskapital
*Svenska Statens Språkresor AB
*Lantbrukskredit AB
*Svensk Fastighetsvärdering

2000s

*Nordbanken
*Celsius AB
*Grängesbergs Gruvor
*Svenska Lagerhus
*Svenska Miljöstyrningsrådet
*SAKAB
*SGAB
*Kurortsverksamhet
*Vin & Sprit - sold to Pernod Ricard for 5,626 billion euro [cite news
url = http://www.thelocal.se/10800/20080331/
title = Pernod wins auction for Vin & Sprit
accessdate = 2008-03-31
publisher = The Local
date = 2008-03-31]
* OMX - stock exchange - shares sold to Borse Dubai for 2.1 billion SEK [cite news
url = http://www.http://di.se/Nyheter/?page=/Avdelningar/Artikel.aspx%3FO%3DRSS%26ArticleId%3D2008%255c02%255c15%255c270677
title = Regeringen har sålt hela OMX-innehavet
accessdate = 2008-05-02
publisher = Dagens Industri
date = 2008-02-15] .

Planned privatisations

* Nordea (19.5% owned by Swedish government) [ [http://www.nordea.com/sitemod/default/index.aspx?pid=70382 Shareholders | Nordea.com ] ]
* SAS (50% owned by Swedish, Danish, Norwegian governments) [ [http://www.scandinavian.net/EC/Appl/Home/FrontDoor/0,3479,LNG%253Dsv%2526SO%253D3F835E583CA54419_8E54125940D43A6B%2526MKT%253DSE,00.html Scandinavian Airlines ] ]
* Telia Sonera [ [http://www.privataaffarer.se/newsText.asp?src=pa&a=20780 Privata Affärer - Staten fick 18 miljarder för aktierna i Teliasonera ] ] (37.3% owned by the Swedish government)
* SBAB
* Apoteket (partial, 2009) [ [http://www.dn.se/DNet/jsp/polopoly.jsp?d=1042&a=735532&rss=554 Regeringen överens om att sälja apotek ] ]

Ukraine

* Kryvorizhstal

United Arab Emirates

* Damas Jewelry (November 2004, 55% of the company for $224 million)

United Kingdom

* Amersham International (1982)
* Associated British Ports (1982)
* British Telecom (1984)
* British Steel (1988)
* British Gas (1986)
* British Airways (1987)
* British Energy (1996)
* Britoil (1982)
* British Airports Authority (1987)
* British Petroleum
* British Rail (1995)
* Cable and Wireless (1981)
* Defence Evaluation and Research Agency (partial, 2001)
* Enterprise Oil (1984)
* British Leyland - privatised piecemeal as Rover Group (1988), Coventry Climax (1982), Jaguar plc, Leyland Trucks and Freight Rover (1987), Leyland Bus, Istel, Unipart, Alvis plc, and numerous other companies, some of which have since recombined
* Royal Aircraft Establishment - partial privatisation
* Water industry (England and Wales only) (1989)
* Electricity generation and distribution Industry (1990)
* Scottish Electricity
* British Coal Industry
* National Air Traffic Services
* Over two million council-owned houses sold to their tenants
* Her Majesty's Stationery Office - HMSO - Partial privatisation
* British Technology Group (now BTG plc)
* Thomas Cook (1972)
* National Bus Company
* Scottish Bus Group
* Many municipal bus companies (local-authority owned)
* Passenger Transport Executive owned bus companies
* London Buses
* Rolls-Royce plc (1987)
* British Shipbuilders
* British Aerospace
* Property Services Agency
* Royal Ordnance (1987)
* The Independent Broadcasting Authority's engineering (transmitter) department (privatized as Network Transcommunications Ltd, which became NTL)

United States

* Conrail
* Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae)
* Student Loan Marketing Association (SLM Corporation) (Sallie Mae)

References

* [http://faculty-staff.ou.edu/M/William.L.Megginson-1/samplebill.pdf Sample Firms Privatized Through Public Share Offerings, 1961-August 2000] - Appendix to Juliet D’Souza, William L. Megginson (1999), [http://faculty-staff.ou.edu/M/William.L.Megginson-1/prv90pap.pdf "The Financial and Operating Performance of Privatized Firms during the 1990s"] , "Journal of Finance" August 1999
* [http://www.manda-institute.org Institute of Mergers, Acquisitions and Alliances (MANDA) M&A] - Academic research institute on mergers & acquisitions, including privatization

Footnotes