Public Property Agency announces second privatization round

The Public Property Agency of the Ministry of Economy will sell state property to the value of 1.2 billion lei during the second privatization round. The auctions will take place at the Moldova Stock Exchange between September 21 and 24. There will be auctioned state holdings in 51 joint stock companies. In 26 of them, the state owns more than 50% of the stock, Info-Prim Neo reports. Among the given companies are Rif - Acvaaparat and Raut based in Balti, the Floresti Tobacco Factory and a number of banks and pharmaceutical companies, said the Agency's director general Tudor Copaci. A new investment contest was opened early in September. It will continue by October 7. Four movie theaters and a patrimony facility are exhibited for sale at this contest. A condition is that the investors maintain their status of centers of culture and recreational centers. The initial selling price of the auctioned property is 12 million lei. It is expected that those who will buy this property will invest at least 30 million lei. A commercial contest is held simultaneously to sell the state-owned jewelry plant Giuvaer, the companies Energoreparatii and Vibropribor and the YAK – 40 plane given by Vladimir Putin to former President Vladimir Voronin as a gift. The initial selling price of these assets is 332.2 million lei. An outcry auction will take place on September 22. There will be exhibited 12 unfinished buildings, located mainly in rural areas, including the administrative block of the Chisinau Microbiology and Virology Institute and the adjoining land that is nine hectares in area. “Experts and party leaders said it is not the right time to privatize state assets as the election campaign is coming. But we have been in election campaigns for two years and a half. A sum of 350 million lei was projected to be received from privatization this year. Only 55 million lei have been transferred to the state budget so far. 30 million lei of this was earned during the first privatization round held in June. Besides, the state did not efficiently manage this property and does not have money to invest in its development,” said Tudor Copaci. He also said that the second privatization round offers opportunities mainly to national investors.