site.btaBulgaria Does Not Intend to Be Involved in Purchase of CEZ's Local Assets - Finance Minister

Sofia, April 3 (BTA) - Finance Minister Vladislav Goranov said the Bulgarian State is not going to be involved in any way in the acquisition of all or part of CEZ Group's assets in Bulgarian territory. He was speaking at a meeting of the Ad Hoc Inquiry Committee on the Facts and Circumstances surrounding the Privatization and Planned Sale of the CEZ Group Companies in Bulgaria on Tuesday.

Goranov added that the government does not intend to intervene by initiating legislation or in any other way in private law relations, which are even out of the jurisdiction of Bulgaria. He said this position had been cleared with Prime Minister Boyko Borissov to a large extent.

Borissov had been invited but declined to attend the meeting in a letter saying that his comments might influence CEZ's international investment arbitration proceedings against Bulgaria, launched in 2016.

Goranov recalled that following the news that CEZ Group and Inercom had signed a preliminary agreement on the sale of CEZ assets in Bulgaria, the public wanted to know what the State's role would be in such a deal. This prompted Borissov and members of the cabinet to meet with Inercom owner Ginka Vurbakova and ask her for information about the deal and whether the State could be involved in it. Vurbakova said she was ready to have the State participate in the deal but no specific methods or resources were discussed. Inercom's owner also said at the time that this could not be discussed before the Czech company had agreed.

So far neither the Bulgarian nor the Czech company has provided an official reply to the Bulgarian government. "Despite the public interest, we do not believe that the State's involvement in such a deal is the way to protect the Bulgarian citizens' interest," the Finance Minister said.