AS BIDDING was about to close on the sale of Australian National, the federal finance ministry announced on June 20 that privatisation would be delayed by a month. The Office of Asset Sales had shortlisted 15 bidders, who were given until July 31 to submit offers for AN’s freight operations in Tasmania and South Australia, and the three long-distance passenger trains.
Deutsche Morgan Grenfell, which is advising on the sale, had declared the government’s original aim of completing the sales by the end of the financial year on June 30 to be impractical. DMG was also trying to encourage further consolidation among the bidders (RG 7.97 p440).
In its attempts to secure a majority for enabling legislation in the Senate, the Liberal government in Canberra faced opposition to the sale from Labor and Democrat members, and this may have influenced the decision to postpone the closing date. As it happened, the bill cleared the Senate without amendment on June 23. A similar situation applies in the South Australian Parliament. o
