A bid by Marlboro-maker Philip Morris, which now claims 42% of cigarette sales in Turkey, has been ruled out by the Competition Board. There is no such problem for JTI, which makes Camel and Winston, or British American Tobacco (BAT), which makes Kent and Pall Mall. The non-Chinese world's number three and two are once again Tekel's most likely customers - all the more so as they have struggled to raise their market shares above 10% through organic growth. Among local hopefuls, the Dogan Group, a leading media-to-energy conglomerate, and Ankara-based Limak, one of the partners in the venture that bought out the alcoholic drinks operation, haven't ruled out a bid. And prominent among potential newcomers to the Turkish market is Korean Tobacco and Ginseng (KT&G), which pulled out of the original tender at a late stage in 2003. However, Imperial Tobacco, which is currently in the process of acquiring Franco-Spanish Altadis, is tipped to stay on the sidelines.