Deutsche Bahn Schenker takes CVC, Maersk, DSV and Bahri into final round, sources say

By Emma-Victoria Farr and Markus Wacket

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Germany's national rail operator Deutsche Bahn has chosen Maersk, DSV, Bahri and CVC in consortium with ADIA and GIC to enter the final round of a sale process for its logistics subsidiary Schenker, three sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.

Reuters reported last Friday that Deutsche Bahn had shortlisted four final bidders for the process, without disclosing names.

Deutsche Bahn wants to collect final bids for the business in July, two of the sources said.

DSV, CVC, ADIA, GIC and Maersk declined to comment. Bahri, Saudi Arabia's national shipping carrier, was not immediately available for comment.

"After intensive evaluation of the now confirmed, non-binding offers for DB Schenker, we have selected the bidders with whom we will move into the next phase of the sales process," a spokesperson for Deutsche Bahn said.

"In the coming weeks, these bidders will have the opportunity to make binding offers for DB Schenker as part of a detailed examination. The entire process is going according to plan," they added.

Some of last week's bids exceeded 15 billion euros ($16.21 billion), while others came in around 14 billion euros, as previously reported. Proceeds will help the state-owned rail operator cut its debt of around 34 billion euros.

An agreement with the final buyer should be in place this year, with the sale scheduled to be completed in 2025.

Schenker has over 70,000 employees in around 130 countries worldwide, including around 15,000 in Germany.

($1 = 0.9252 euros)

(Reporting by Emma-Victoria Farr and Markus Wacket, editing by Josie Kao)