The meeting took place in Brussels. Another topic was the conversion into stock of the debt held by chemical company Oltchim (OLT.RO) to privatization authority AVAS.
Ariton informed Almunia that the government has approved the memorandum establishing the interest paid by Oltchim on the debt to AVAS, the Economy Ministry said in a press release.
Once the European Commission decides on the aid granted to Oltchim, authorities in Bucharest will be able to complete the company’s privatization in the shortest time possible, as requested by Almunia as well.
In 2002, Oltchim owed a total 508.6 million lei (EUR118.8 million) to the Finance Ministry, since the ministry paid guarantees on external loans contracted by the company. AVAS took over the receivable from the Finance Ministry.
The government decided in 2009 to convert the debt into stock, and the overall value of new shares issued will include the interest rate agreed between Oltchim and AVAS. The conversion requires the approval of the European Commission.
Mining company CNH will be divided, by the end of the year, separating the viable mines from the non-viable ones. The non-viable mines will keep functioning until 2018, during which time they will be subsidized by the state. CNH owes RON4.13 billion to the state budget. (EUR1=RON4.2809)