First of all, in most of cases, only remaining state-owned stakes will be sold. Secondly, many biggest state-owned enterprises are not included in the list, at least for the time being. The wish list of the Treasury Minister Aleksander Grad fails to include the so-called holy cows like copper producer KGHM , insurer PZU , and fuel giants PKN Orlen and Lotos.
The Ministry promises that although the list presents a two-year plan, it will privatize possibly many, maybe even all, companies this year. This would mean six companies weekly.
“If we manage to implement at least half of these plans, we will be satisfied. If the state sold 150 companies annually, it would be a big increase. I hope this coalition will do much better in privatizing than its predecessors. It won’t be very difficult”, Robert Gwiazdowski, head of Adam Smith’s Center think-tank commented.
The following companies will be listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange: Enea and Polska Grupa Energetyczna power companies, the Warsaw Stock Exchange itself, Fabryka Sklejka-Pisz board producer, Huta Labedy steel plant, PLL LOT flag carrier, PW Rzeczpospolita publisher, ZTS Gamrat, BGZ bank, ZPOW Pektowin, ZGH Boleslaw. The state will look for investor for Ruch press distributor, Wydawnictwo Wiedza Powszechna publisher, CF Cefarm and Ceram Bialystok pharmacy firms.
Out of 310 companies in the list, 77 are 100-percent state-owned ones. In 2007, the ministry of the treasury collected PLN 1.95bn (EUR 542.1m) from privatization. PLN 2.87bn was raised in dividends paid by state-owned companies.
(PLN 1 = EUR 0.278)