Bank consortium becomes largest shareholder in Stalexport after debt conversion

The debt of zł.141 million arose from a loan collateral given by Stalexport to Walcownia Rur Jedność (WRJ) in 1997 for an investment which has not been finished until today. Part of the debt will be written off, while the rest (between zł.33.5 million to zł.65.2 million) will be converted into shares - details of the agreement are still being discussed. "After the conversion the banks will have the largest stake of Stalexport, but not the majority stake," says deputy chairman Mieczyslaw Skolozynski. The company will have to face yet another issue - its liabilities to the state due to so called reguarantees for the failed investment. Stalexport will attempt to restructure this debt and estimates that it should be lowered to about zł.80 million. WRJ affected Stalexport's results last year; the company posted zł.144.5 million net loss, while the revenue totaled zł.442 million.(Puls Biznesu, p.9) J.L.