Only two companies left in the race for "Moldomin"

• The bids have been opened, and the winner will be announced on August 4th

Only two of the three companies which have submitted firm bids for the buying of the mines of SC "Moldomin" SA Moldova Nouă are still left in the race, according to Răzvan Zăvăleanu, managing partner at "RTZ & Partners", receiver of "Moldomin", who did not reveal the name of the competitors. He said that one of the companies didn"t make it to the stage of opening the bids, which took place a few days ago, since the brief it submitted did not include all the mandatory elements, meaning that the application was rejected even in the verification stage.

The two companies that are competing for buying the mines of Moldova Nouă are negotiating with the authorities today, Mr. Zăvăleanu added, who mentioned that there is the possibility that these offers will be rejected as well, if prices will not prove acceptable.

In this case, the authorities will begin a new call for tenders for "Moldomin".

The bidders will have the option of making higher bids in the coming three days, and the winner will be announced on August 4th, 2011.

According to Mr. Zăvăleanu, the copper mines of "Moldomin" need to be taken over by strong companies, which have expertise in the area, to continue the mining activity with modern technology and in conditions of environmental safety.

In the case of the procedure for the sale of the mines of "Moldomin" nine tender books were bought.

The mines will be sold together with their exploitation licenses, with copper reserves valued at about 1 billion Euros. The company owes about 50 million Euros, mostly to the Romanian state. The National Tax Administration Agency (ANAF), the main creditor, recently opened the bankruptcy procedure against the company and will oversee the negotiations with investors.

In order to be profitable, the copper mines will require investments of about 150 million Euros. The mining licenses of Moldomin will still be valid for another 11-12 years.