A tender process to concession the Derince Port for 36 years in the Turkish northwestern province of ?zmit was canceled on January 22, after bidders failed to meet the price that had been requested by the tender committee.

Six firms had submitted their initial bids for the port, Cengiz ?n?aat, Y?lport Holding, Safi Kat? Yak? Sanayi, Kumport Liman, Ceynak Lojistik ve Ticaret and British shipping and logistics firm The Peninsular.

The auction took place yesterday. The highest bid in the first round was $180 million, which was increased to $252 million in the second round, and $302 million in the third round.

Safi Kat? Yak? Sanayi, Kumport Liman and Cengiz ?n?aat were three firms remaining in the tender process at the auction stage. However, all three firms withdrew their offers after the tender commission set the minimum price for the auction at $516 million.

Later, the head of the tender commission announced that the tender had been called off. With the cancelation, the second effort to privatize the strategically-located port failed.

The first tender for the transfer of operating rights of Derince Port was held in 2007, in which Türkerler Joint Venture Group was the highest bidder with $US195.25 million. However, the Council of State cancelled that tender, citing contradiction in the land settlement plan of the area.

The privatization process restarted in October 2013, with Privatization Administration's announcement of receiving offers.

Having one of the biggest storage area in the region, the port is widely used for finished vehicle transportation.