Governments privatize their assets for a variety of political and economic reasons. The economic downturn has meant that governments are looking to the private sector for opportunities to raise finances or transfer businesses that are expensive to run. 

Privatization is a complex area, and there are many different routes to privatization, including: an IPO or stock exchange listing, a private sale (in whole or in part), a project-style arrangement (concession, franchise or PPP) or an outsourcing. Dentons can offer you expertise in all of these areas.

Whether you are a governmental entity looking to privatize, a buyer looking to acquire state assets, or a bank looking to provide finance for such an arrangement, Dentons can help. Transferring an asset from the private sector to the public sector can be complex. A number of additional issues often arise, including the public procurement process and state aid. Often the transferring asset or business is in a regulated industry, and relevant regulations need to be considered in detail or developed. In order to achieve a successful privatization, our lawyers often must understand the different mind-sets and motivations of the public sector and private sector, and facilitate dialogue between the two sectors’ parties. 

Over the years, areas of privatization have widened from the telecommunications, airline and infrastructure industries to cover sectors such as energy, defense and essential utilities. You will benefit from Dentons’ first-rate experience in all of these sectors.

Insights

How transparency and governance can help African airlines soar

July 17, 2024

South Africa: Ethiopian Airlines and how it communicated with its stakeholders during the COVID-19 pandemic is a good case study on how airlines can build trust as the industry is set to take off again, offering lessons to our own country in South Africa. As African airlines are set to convincingly surge this year, with IBA suggesting that the sector will grow at a compound annual growth rate of 4.7% from this year until the end of the decade, it is vital that all airline operators act in a manner that is transparent and in accordance with good governance principles if they are to live up to this promise.

Uzbekistan approves new privatization law

March 26, 2024

Uzbekistan: A new law that will impact purchases of state-owned property has been approved. The Law LRU-907, “On privatization of state property” was approved by the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan on February 14, 2024 and will go into effect from May 16, 2024. 

Issuance of the Private Sector Participation Law in Saudi Arabia

March 17, 2021

Saudi Arabia: The Saudi Press Agency announced today the approval of the long-awaited Private Sector Participation Law, making Saudi Arabia the latest country in the region to have adopted legislation governing public-private partnerships. The new law is certain to facilitate Saudi Arabia’s ambition to launch the region’s leading projects in tourism, industrial development and environmental sustainability, including the Red Sea tourism development project, the incubation of a manufacturing sector and the launch of the smart city of NEOM as a model for sustainable living.

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Recent Press Releases

Maksym Sysoiev elected Co-chair of the ACC Energy Committee

April 2, 2021

Maksym Sysoiev, a partner in Dentons’ Kyiv office, was elected as Co-Chair of the Chamber Energy Committee of the American Chamber of Commerce (ACC) in Ukraine for 2021. This is the second year in a row that he has been elected to this position.