Warsaw (Puls Biznesu) – Ernst Jansen, Eureko deputy CEO, said that the conditions of the possible settlement with the Polish government must be different than those agreed on in 2005 when the settlement was being negotiated.
The conflict between Eureko, the minority shareholder of PZU, Poland’s insurance company and the biggest financial institution in the region, and the Ministry of the Treasure, the majority shareholder, is getting more and more difficult. The politicians from the Law and Justice (PiS) ruling party wanted even PZU not to pay out the dividend, which would go to – among others – Eureko. Ernst Jansen, Eureko deputy CEO complained that while Andrzej Mikosz, the previous minister of the treasure, wanted to negotiate the conditions of the settlement, his successor Wojciech Jasinski does not want to talk at all. However, there is still a chance for conciliation.
“I can assure you that I want a settlement with the Polish government. But there is not much time left because the arbitrary tribunal will soon work over the value of the settlement. When it sets the value it will be too late to negotiate”, Ernst Jansen believed.
When the Arbitrary Tribunal confirmed in its partial decision that the privatization agreement for PZU was broken, Eureko had high demands.
“We want PZU to be on the Warsaw Stock Exchange as soon as possible. Beside, we expect the Ministry of the Treasure to sell us 21 percent of the company at the price as of the year 2001. The third thing is that we want to be paid back by the government for the losses we incurred after the Polish governments failed to fulfill the conditions of the agreement” Ernst Jansen remembered.
The Polish Ministry of the Treasure cannot accept these demands. The Treasury is supposed to sell the shares at PLN 117 while several months ago Eureko paid PLN 300 per each share of PZU bought from Manchester Securities. The settlement amounts to EUR 1.5-2 billion. According to the settlement agreement signed at the end of last year, Eureko would be able to buy 40 percent of PZU at the market price.
“We weren’t sure then that the tribunal would say we were right, Ernst Jansen said.
He admitted that Eureko could give up the rest of the settlements.