Two people with knowledge of the sale said that Saudi Arabian Bahri dropped its bid to buy Schenker's German logistics unit from Deutsche Bahn, reducing the competition down to DSV or CVC.

Sources said that the departure of Bahri means that the state-owned Deutsche Bahn must lower its sights for proceeds, as Bahri’s offer was the highest, at more than $15,4 billion ($16,4 billion), they said.

The deadline for final bids is August 31.

Sources have said that the lowest bidder in this auction was 13 billion Euros.

Deutsche Bahn has a debt of more than 34 billion euro and said that it will not comment on any individual bidders out of principle.

The Saudi company that is also known by the name National Shipping Company of Saudi Arabia did not respond immediately to a comment request. Danish shipping company Maersk announced earlier this month that it no longer wanted to buy Schenker. It cited "areas of challenge from an integration standpoint".

Sources have confirmed that CVC is pursuing this business with Abu Dhabi Investment Authority and GIC.

According to the research group Technavio, the global market for third-party logistics is expected to grow more than $500 billion between 2023 and 2027. This growth will be driven by ecommerce and integrated shipping, as well as by ecommerce.

The sector faces challenges such as high operational costs and pricing that is competitive. Schenker is in competition with AP Moller Maersk and Baltic Logistics Group as well as Kuehne&Nagel, DHL and Kuehne&Nagel.

Schenker employs over 70,000 people in 130 countries, including 15,000 in Germany.