The last APAPS outcry: auctions and fiscal exemptions for non-privatized companies

Before the APAPS merges into another institution that is supposed to manage the State assets, the APAPS issued a law draft, an emergency ordinance aiming to sell in a hurry everything it wasn't able to sell in three years and a half, plus what it got back from the courts, which cancelled enough privatization contracts. According to the draft (expected to be analyzed by the Government in its coming session), all non-privatized companies still in the APAPS portfolio shall be sold through open outcry auction. This would ensure the privatization of any company within 15 days, since the moment the announcement was made public. "Companies for everyone" seems to be the new APAPS logo. Even installment sales were taken into account. The starting price shall be calculated by the APAPS according to a simplified valuation report. However, the final price cannot go lower than 80% of the starting price. If no bidders will be present, another auction will be scheduled - or the APAPS might go for another privatization procedure. If only one bidder will be interested, the State will negotiate with him as usual. The payment must be finalized within 15 days. For assets acquired by the APAPS after the privatization contracts were cancelled, things are simpler yet. The APAPS decided to sell such assets through an straight transfer contract. This means nothing other than to sell the APAPS stake to the bidder eager to pay the price difference from the previous privatization (plus interest, if the buyer decided to go for installment payments). The APAPS officials seem so certain that the straight transfer method will work perfectly fine that they don't have a plan B. Most likely, their certainty comes from another stipulation within the draft, allowing for a fiscal amnesty for all such companies: full or partial exempt for all debts by December 31, 2002, including debts to local budgets or for loans granted by the State. The only debts that cannot be fully erased are those related to frozen assets, but for those the APAPS also managed to find a solution: either to reschedule payments or to convert them into shares. Supplementary facilities were prepared either to finalize certain privatizations ("Fortus" Iasi, "Tractorul" Brasov and "Hart" Miercurea Ciuc) or to consolidate others ("Cost" Tirgoviste, "Industria Sirmei" Cimpia Turzii, "Tubinox" Bucuresti, "Chimcomplex" Borzesti). "Tractorul" will get rid of all the amounts the APAPS granted to it as loans, while "Hart" will get rid of the ROL six billion loan received from the Ministry of Public Finance for tractor production. All State liabilities at "Fortus" and "Turbinox" will be converted into shares. "Cost" will see all its delayed payments to the State budget cancelled, while the amount it owes to the Social Security Fund will be converted into shares.