Minister Vreme: We will not sell the Romtelecom stake at any price

The Romanian state is waiting for a bid from OTE Greek group for the 45.99% stake it owns in Romtelecom, a major telecom operator domestically, next month.

The Communications Ministry, the institution through which the state is a shareholder in Romtelecom, values the stock at 1bn euros, a sum it wants to get from the sale of stock of from listing on the Stock Exchange.

"The announcement is in fact an intention to sell. In this world, one must catch any good offer. This is why we will not sell at any price," said Communication Minister Valerian Vreme, who explained the idea to sell came up in spring, before he took over the minister position, in September.
As for the 1bn-euro price, the minister says this is a personal estimate. The sum is high, though, and OTE and Deutsche Telekom will be interested in taking over the Romanian state's stake in Romtelecom, but at a much lower price, according to analysts quoted by Mediafax.
Asked whether the offer came amid the financial crisis, the minister denied it, arguing the offer is older.