PCC, once again on the Board of Directors of Oltchim

Wojciech Zaremba, the representative of PCC SE in Romania, yesterday succeeded in becoming a member of the Board of Directors of Oltchim again, according to sources from inside the company, after about two years of absence. Yesterday night, after heated debates, the shareholders have approved the membership of the Board of Directors (CA) of Oltchim, which, aside from Mr. Zaremba, also includes Rodin Traicu, Mihai Bălan, Ionel Florin, Radu Adrian and Petre Vlăsceanu.

According to our sources, the inclusion of Mr. Zaremba on the Board of Directors was unconceivable for the majority shareholder in the beginning of the General Shareholder Meeting, especially since Oltchim has several ongoing lawsuits against the representatives of PCC (the tort case against Wojciech Zaremba and Waldemar Preussner, and the unfair competition lawsuit against PCC). Allegedly, yesterday's debates revolved precisely around this issue: whether the appointment of Wojciech Zaremba comes into conflict with the charges being brought against him from back when he served on the old Board of Directors. Eventually, the majority shareholder gave in to the insistences of PCC and accepted the presence of the representative of PCC on the Board of Directors of Oltchim, the quoted sources also say.

The shareholders of Oltchim however, have rejected the request of PCC for Oltchim to drop the lawsuits it has filed against the German company.

According to our sources, the shareholders have also approved the amendment of the budget for the year 2012 by the directors, the drafting of a realistic budget for next year, the drafting of a report which would review the product distribution system of Oltchim, as well as the drafting of reports that would clarify the stage of the contracts for sponsorship, marketing and the use of advertising.

Some sources from inside the company, have also told us that the CEO of the company, Mihai Bălan, has also presented to the shareholders a plan for economic recovery, which would also include the program for resuming operation, the renegotiation of the existing contracts and financing solutions.

This plan was allegedly presented in Brussels as well, and the European Commission also suggested that it include restructuring measures. Allegedly, the current management of Oltchim is reviewing the idea of outsourcing activities such as the construction material division, the car fleet or the greenhouses, the quoted sources are also saying.

The naysayers at Oltchim are saying that the outsourcing project goes back a while, and was devised by former CEO Constantin Roibu, who was allegedly present yesterday during the first part of the General Shareholder Meeting. There are stories around the company that Roibu spoke during the shareholder meeting and said that the turnaround plan would not work, because it is not well thought out.