3i and Allianz Capital Partners considered putting the auction for ferry group Scandlines on hold. This was after failing to agree on a price with the remaining bidder, said source familiar with the process.

The source who spoke in condition of anonymity said that the two private equity firms are seeking to raise Eur1.4 billion for Scandlines. TPG, another private equity investor offered only Eur1.3 billion for the Baltic ferry operator.

Spokesperson for 3i and ACP declined to give statements regarding the report. Representatives for TPG refused to comment.

On a different note, Scandlines' peer DFDS chief executive officer told the Danish news agency Ritzau that he was still interested in taking over the activities of the ferry operator. This was despite the dropped out of the auction last week.

During the peak of the buyout boom in 2007, 3i and ACP paid Eur1.5 billion for Scandlines. The deal was backed with Eur1.28 billion of debt according to Thomson Reuters LPC data.