The news, revealed by Intereuropa on Friday, caps months of negotiations after two companies, Pošta Slovenije and British logistics company Xpediator, submitted binding bids in a call for expression of interest that was published in June 2018.

The value of the deal has not been disclosed, but the business daily Finance has reported the transaction being in the EUR 100 million range together with debt.

On the Ljubljana Stock Exchange the 72% stake was worth roughly EUR 30 million today.

Pošta Slovenije said Intereuropa was a powerful logistics firm whose business is a good match for the postal company. It hopes to extract significant synergies from the acquisition.

"We believe that with us as a strong strategic partner, Intereuropa will develop its potential," Pošta Slovenije general manager Boris Novak was quoted as saying in a press release.

Since parcel delivery and logistics services are the main pillars of Pošta Slovenije, "it makes sense to grow on the logistics market, organically as well as with acquisitions," the company said.

Intereuropa posted a net profit of EUR 4.7 million on sales of EUR 160.4 million for 2019, a far cry from EUR 200 million-plus it was making before the crisis.

The company used to be the biggest player on the logistics market, but mismanagement, a disastrous foray into Russia in 2007-2008, and the financial and economic crisis brought it to its knees.

While it has been recovering in recent years, it has been held back by high debt, which stood at EUR 60 million at the end of last year, and stiff competition.

Pošta Slovenije reported net sales of almost EUR 251 million for last year. Net profit was up 18% to EUR 10.5 million. While postal services accounted for 77% of sales, logistics contributed 6%.