The yet-to-be-finalized sale of gas company DEPA Infrastructure, acquired by Italgas, Europe’s second largest gas distributor, has encountered a hurdle on the final stretch as a result of certification issues raised by RAE, Greece’s Regulatory Authority for Energy.

The unexpected issues faced by this privatization, promising to provide 733 million euros to TAIPED, the country’s privatization fund, are serious and threaten to derail a sale and purchase agreement signed last December by the two sellers, the Greek State and Hellenic Petroleum (ELPE), and the Italian buyer.

The sale’s procedure had progressed swiftly, leading to competition committee approval, but events over the past few days, instigated by RAE’s change of stance on the certification conditions of DEPA Infrastructure’s three subsidiaries, the gas distributors EDA Attiki, EDA THESS and DEDA, have suddenly led to confusion, bringing the sale to a standstill.

RAE has offered conditional certification for the three subsidiaries, setting terms that did not exist in the lead-up to the sale and its conditions, according to sources.

Consequently, certification offered to the subsidiaries will not be considered valid if the buyer proceeds with an equity capital increase within three years of the DEPA Infrastructure sale’s finalization. Also, the agendas of all three subsidiaries will need to remain unchanged for their certification to remain valid, according to the sources.

TAIPED officials are believed to have been angered by these initiatives, considering them to be beyond RAE’s authority. Officials at Greece’s finance and energy ministries, as well as Italgas, have also been annoyed by RAE’s decision.

TAIPED and Italgas officials are believed to be engaged in talks in search of a compromise solution.