This autumn could perhaps see the end of the long-running saga over the takeover and reopening of the grain terminal at the Port of Gdynia. There is now a chance that the SBT Consortium, which won both tenders for the facility, will receive approval from the European Commission to complete the transaction.

The long-running search for a new operator for the Baltic Grain Terminal at the Port of Gdynia may finally be coming to an end. Following two tenders that selected the same winner, protests, subsequent decisions by the Ministry of Infrastructure – the first unfavourable to the winning consortium and the second favourable – and protracted formalities, an application for approval to take control of the terminal has finally reached the European Commission. The applicant is the SBT Consortium, comprising Szczecin Bulk Terminal, Tapini and Ribera. This is one of the final stages that must be completed before the new operator can formally take control of the facility.

The European Commission has set a preliminary deadline of 12 October for its decision. This does not mean that the SBT Consortium will become the terminal’s formal lessee on that date; rather, the Commission may then approve the completion of the transaction.

According to available information, Bunge and Copenhagen Merchants Group, with which the companies forming SBT are affiliated, submitted the application to the European Commission on 7 September. The Commission must now conduct market research and consultations, including with the consortium’s competitors. The main concern raised about SBT, meanwhile, has been its direct link to Bunge, formerly known as Viterra, one of the leading companies in the trading of agricultural commodities. Some have argued that this creates a risk of the emergence of a monopoly on the Polish market.

If the European Commission issues a positive decision, SBT and the Port of Gdynia Authority will be able to sign the final lease agreement, under which the consortium will receive the right to operate the terminal for 30 years. The new operator could then begin physically adapting the facility to its needs and restoring cargo-handling operations.

At present, the SBT Consortium and the Port of Gdynia Authority are bound by a preliminary agreement signed in summer 2025. In September, the Ministry of Infrastructure subsequently issued its official approval for the transaction. The next step involved the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection (UOKiK), which, however, referred the matter to the European Commission because Bunge and Copenhagen Merchants are international groups.

Photo: GospodarkaMorska.pl