RED Nord's accounts frozen over debt of US$1.5m

The Economic Court of Appeals' decision to declare the electric power distributor SA RED Nord insolvent at the request of the Ukrainian company SRL Energoalians is groundless, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy Valeriu Lazar said, quoted by Info-Prim Neo. At the June 10 meeting of the Government, Lazar said the state owns the 100% holding in SA RED Nord and this company is not insolvent. The financial reports for 2010 presented by the company confirm this. “The debt of US$1.5 million has been confirmed neither by RED Nord, nor by the current manager of Energoalians. Moreover, the data show RED Nord cleared its debts to the power suppliers,” Valeriu Lazar said. Under the Economic Court of Appeals' decision, the accounts of RED Nord were frozen and there was named a temporary administrator. The Deputy Prime Minister said SA Red Nord will immediately lodge an appeal with the Supreme Court of Justice as its assets are much larger than the alleged debt and it cannot be declared insolvent. Minister of Justice Alexandru Tanase confirmed that the given debt was mentioned for the first time in 2001. The president of the Supreme Court of Justice Ion Muruianu tried a related case in 2008 and now filed an application to the Court of Appeals, which appointed a temporary administrator of RED Nord within three days. Prime Minister Vlad Filat suggested returning to this subject at a special meeting.