Appeals for president to intervene in Daewoo-FSO talks

Car manufacturer Daewoo-FSO trade union members have sent a letter requesting the help of President Aleksander Kwasniewski, who is leaving for Korea on Sunday to watch the World Cup. It is possible that the President will hold talks concerning the future of the car producer during his stay. The negotiations with creditors, which began on May 15, were put on hold after it transpired that representatives from Korea would not acquire any shares in the planned New Small Company (NSC). Polish creditors, including the State Treasury, would hold the majority stake. Daewoo-FSO owes zl. 591 million to six banks operating in Poland: BPH, Bank Handlowy, Pekao SA, BIG BG, ING Bank Slaski and Kredyt Bank. In addition, the company owes zl. 653 million to the Korean K-Exim Bank and zl. 3.053 billion to Daewoo Motor. The Undersecretary of State at the Economy Ministry, Maciej Lesny, who is responsible for talks concerning Daewoo-FSO, announced ten days ago that if the Polish and Korean creditors do not come to an agreement concerning the formation of the new company by May 27, a petition would be filed for bankruptcy on June 7 during the Shareholders' Meeting. Yesterday the Economy Ministry announced that the negotiations would be extended as the Korean creditors have to carry out internal consultations concerning the formation of the New Small Company. According to unofficial sources, the Koreans are demanding a 50% stake in the company, whose estimated value is zl. 1 billion. (Prawo i Gospodarka, p. 3; Rzeczpospolita, p. B3) A.K