Berlin - The German government downgraded plans Wednesday to partly privatize the national railways system, but an aide to Chancellor Angela Merkel denied that the current government had given up. A sale to investors of just under one quarter of DB Mobility Logistics, a unit which operates passenger and freight trains, had been a centrepiece of the Merkel government's policies.
It had been set for last week, but was called off because of the global financial crisis.
Whereas parties on the left demanded the privatization be called off completely, officials initially seemed to suggest the delay would be just a matter of weeks.
Torsten Albig, spokesman for the German Finance Ministry, did not explicitly say Wednesday there would be no sale in 2009, but instead said the federal government was not expecting any privatization receipts next year.
Thomas de Maiziere, Merkel's chief of staff, insisted later that a sale before the next German general election on September 27, 2009 remained possible if stock markets recovered. He said it was postponed, not abandoned.
Merkel's spokesman Ulrich Wilhelm said earlier, "The government definitely does not intend to sell assets below their worth," so it would wait till "a reasonable return can be expected."
The political stakes have been raised by public criticism of large bonuses promised to DB chief executive Hartmut Mehdorn and his aides by the company board.
Finance Minister Peer Steinbrueck said Wednesday, "If there is a flotation, there won't be any bonus provision."
Mehdorn is chief executive of both DB Mobility Logistics and its parent, Deutsche Bahn, which is to remain in federal ownership. The parent company will retain control of the tracks and stations.
