The privatisation of the state-owned Georgian Railway Ltd is not an option, Economy Minister Giorgi Arveladze said on July 16.

Arveladze did not, however, rule out the possibility of handing over managerial control to a private company.

“It is untimely to speak about any specific plan or details at this point,” he told reporters after meeting with the chief of Georgian Railways, Irakli Ezugbaia.

Last week Parliament approved a proposal removing railway infrastructure from the list of state-owned facilities that cannot be privatized.