Deputies seek to annul Silesian sugar privatization, create national holding

A group of Sejm deputies in favor of creating a national sugar holding called Polski Cukier have appealed for the annulment of the zl. 230 million sale of the Silesian Sugar Corporation (SSC) to Saint Louis Sucre of France. On November 15th, after nine months of negotiations with Saint Louis Sucre, the Treasury Ministry closed the SSC privatization deal. Last Friday, a group of deputies demanded that Treasury Minister Andrzej Chronowski annul the deal and immediately create the Polski Cukier holding out of 47 state-owned sugar mills, including those located in Silesia. There is still a chance to stop the Saint Louis Sucre deal from going ahead, as the Interior Ministry has yet to approve it. According to Marian Dembinski, one of the proponents of creating Polski Cukier, the Ministry will not agree to sell SSC to Saint Louis Sucre. An anonymous employee of one of the sugar plants which would be incorporated by Polski Cukier, claims that, if created, the holding could earn as much as $400 million a year. (Puls Biznesu, p.3) T.J.