* The first stage would be to declare the company insolvent, and then have "Hidroenergetica" acquire its assets for 150 million Euros
The government"s plan to restructure Romania"s energy production involves incorporating the "National Coal Company" (CNH) into "Hidroenergetica", together with "Hidroelectrica" and the thermoelectric powert plants of Paroşeni and Deva. The plan would help the CNH pay off the almost 1 billion Euros it owes the state.
Government sources say that in order to save the company, it needs to have it file for insolvency. However, the process involves rather complicated legal procedures. According to the same sources, prior to filing for insolvency, the CNH will have paid off all its suppliers. After the CNH files for insolvency, "Hidroenergetica" will acquire its assets for approximately 150 million Euros, our sources said. As a result, the functional mines of the CNH and its current employees would become part of the new energy conglomerate, and the state budget would actually get something from its largest debtor. The CNH that would enter bankruptcy after being having been stripped clean, being nothing more than an empty shell.
The only way for "Hidroenergetica" to take over the National Coal Company is for the latter to pay off all of its debts first, as the European Commission prohibits the cancellation of its debts.
However, Constantin Jujan, the general manager of the mining company, says that no definitive decision has been made yet: "The Ministry of the Economy and the Government have not yet made a decision on the method for incorporating CNH into < Hidroenergetica >. At any rate, things need to be clarified within the coming months because the CNH needs to be incorporated into < Hidroenergetica > by the end of the year".
However, the Ministry of the Economy is rushing to clarify the status of the CNH. A
