The Government could approve the rescheduling of SNTR (National Tobacco Company) debts to the state and the cancellation of penalties by the end of the year, following the privatisation contract signed between the Agriculture Ministry and Interagro group, headed by Ioan Nicolae.
Interagro currently holds a 52% stake in the National Tobacco Company SNTR, in the account of the 8.4 million dollars the Government was supposed to give back to Interagro of the ten million dollars the company had paid in the first stage of National Tobacco Company SNTR privatisation.
The price per share that was considered in this transaction stood at some 132,000 ROL, set according to a judiciary expertise, although consultancy firm PriceWaterhouseCoopers had assessed the shares to stand at 80,000 ROL each, Ioan Nicolae said yesterday.
"The Agriculture Ministry has pledged to promote to the Executive the Government Decision on debts next week; it is hard to believe that the Finance Ministry would resort to forced execution for this company. Our interest is included in a contract, but, without the state's help, this company will not be able to operate," Nicolae said.
SNTR registered 1,000 billion ROL in losses last year and expects 900 billion ROL losses this year. The company's total debts amount to 4,300 billion ROL, with 3.100 billion ROL standing for budget dues.
The National Tobacco Company SNTR privatisation grabbed the newspapers' headlines for months. Interagro group was declared the winner of the privatisation tender last May, but the Supreme Court of Justice cancelled the contract in October 2000, as the Greek competitor in this tender, Leaf Tobacco A Michailides LTAM, contested the results.
According to the Law of joint stock companies, National Tobacco Company SNTR should have at least five shareholders and businessman Ioan Nicolae has therefore pledged to bring another three shareholders in the company within six months.
"We may team up with Dan Voiculescu if the offer is profitable, but also with other large cigarette producers that have not entered the Romanian market yet," Nicolae specified.
Grivco group, led by Dan Voiculescu, was the partner of Greek company LTAM in last year's bid for the purchase of 100% stake in SNTR.
According to the current contract concluded with the Agriculture Ministry, Interagro should invest 40 million dollars over the next five years and produce "inexpensive cigarettes aiming at the low income, disfavoured social categories."
Interagro holds the pre-emption right for the purchase of additional stakes in National Tobacco Company SNTR. According to plans heralded by Nicolae, the company would have its own distribution network and would go public on the Stock Exchange by the end of next year.
Nicolae maintains that Interagro would allot 12-18 million dollars as National Tobacco Company SNTR working capital in the first six months.
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