Transport and Communications Minister Plamen Petrov will hold negotiations with Indonesian SiGasCo on the sale of the Varna Shipyard, according to an announcement last Thursday by a SiGasCo lawyer.
Varna Shipyard was sold by tender on April 12 to state-owned Navigation Maritime Bulgare (NaviBulgar), which offered 35.5 million leva ($17 million). Owned by the state, NaviBulgar is also slated for privatisation. SiGasCo, which was among the candidates for the shipyard, failed to take part in the tender due to delayed bank transfer of the participation guaranty deposit.
In an official letter to Prime Minister Simeon Saxe-Coburg, SiGasCo said it was ready to cooperate with Navigation Maritime Bulgare, including the setting up of a joint venture, and immediately provide an order for 25 tankers to the shipyard.
Indonesian SiGasCo, which is a part of Rata Group, manifested its interest in the Varna shipyard as early as last November. The company announced it was ready to invest $100 million in the shipyard to complete the construction of five ships and upgrade the facilities.
A delegation of SiGasCo, led by Ana-Maria Purnavati representing the group in Europe had a meeting last Friday with Plamen Petrov and NaviBulgar Board Chairman Slaveiko Staikov. No details were announced after the talks.
Local media reported the case on Monday, emphasising that Indonesia is the largest Islamic country in the world with deeply rooted Islamic tradition. SiGasCo was a conglomerate of various businessmen from Indonesia, the Philippines, Brunei, India and Malaysia, Pari daily wrote.
Meanwhile, the Movement for Rights and Freedoms announced plans to soon organise an investor forum, inviting what they called foreign investors from the Islamic world, such as the Islamic Conference Organisation, Pari said.
Varna Shipyard was in a dire situation recently after NaviBulgar blocked in the beginning of June the decisions taken by the general meeting of the creditors of the shipyard. Navibulgar’s lawyers declared they would appeal against one specific decision. The last point on the agenda stipulates that the new owner is obliged to pay the bills for security services, electricity and water supply, fire-precaution measures, accumulated since April 12.
April 12 was the date on which the order authorising NaviBulgar to become the actual owner of the shipyard was issued. Navibulgar Executive Director Geno Genov said that his company did not intend to pay those bills because it had not yet become the real owner.
Meanwhile, the problem has grown more complicated. According to the Commercial Code, when an appeal has been filed against any decision of the creditors general meeting all of its decisions have to be blocked. That is why the method for estimating the shipyard assets, acquired after November 30, 2001, cannot start operating.
Next week Varna Court of Appeal is expected to consider the decisions of the creditors. Most workers who are also creditors of the shipyard hope to get their wages for April and May. They did not hide their disappointment with the course of events.
Varna Shipyard was sold by tender on April 12 to state-owned Navigation Maritime Bulgare (NaviBulgar), which offered 35.5 million leva ($17 million). Owned by the state, NaviBulgar is also slated for privatisation. SiGasCo, which was among the candidates for the shipyard, failed to take part in the tender due to delayed bank transfer of the participation guaranty deposit.
In an official letter to Prime Minister Simeon Saxe-Coburg, SiGasCo said it was ready to cooperate with Navigation Maritime Bulgare, including the setting up of a joint venture, and immediately provide an order for 25 tankers to the shipyard.
Indonesian SiGasCo, which is a part of Rata Group, manifested its interest in the Varna shipyard as early as last November. The company announced it was ready to invest $100 million in the shipyard to complete the construction of five ships and upgrade the facilities.
A delegation of SiGasCo, led by Ana-Maria Purnavati representing the group in Europe had a meeting last Friday with Plamen Petrov and NaviBulgar Board Chairman Slaveiko Staikov. No details were announced after the talks.
Local media reported the case on Monday, emphasising that Indonesia is the largest Islamic country in the world with deeply rooted Islamic tradition. SiGasCo was a conglomerate of various businessmen from Indonesia, the Philippines, Brunei, India and Malaysia, Pari daily wrote.
Meanwhile, the Movement for Rights and Freedoms announced plans to soon organise an investor forum, inviting what they called foreign investors from the Islamic world, such as the Islamic Conference Organisation, Pari said.
Varna Shipyard was in a dire situation recently after NaviBulgar blocked in the beginning of June the decisions taken by the general meeting of the creditors of the shipyard. Navibulgar’s lawyers declared they would appeal against one specific decision. The last point on the agenda stipulates that the new owner is obliged to pay the bills for security services, electricity and water supply, fire-precaution measures, accumulated since April 12.
April 12 was the date on which the order authorising NaviBulgar to become the actual owner of the shipyard was issued. Navibulgar Executive Director Geno Genov said that his company did not intend to pay those bills because it had not yet become the real owner.
Meanwhile, the problem has grown more complicated. According to the Commercial Code, when an appeal has been filed against any decision of the creditors general meeting all of its decisions have to be blocked. That is why the method for estimating the shipyard assets, acquired after November 30, 2001, cannot start operating.
Next week Varna Court of Appeal is expected to consider the decisions of the creditors. Most workers who are also creditors of the shipyard hope to get their wages for April and May. They did not hide their disappointment with the course of events.
