Deputy P.M. requests bank consortium to delay Huta Katowice credit installments
Deputy Prime Minister Janusz Steinhoff has kindly requested five banks
(namely, PBK, BH, Pekao S.A., BS and Kredyt Bank) to postpone the date of
payment of zl.400 million in further credit installments owed by Huta
Katowice (HK) to the bank consortium. The steel mill's debts total zl.2.4
billion, but it nevertheless has managed to maintain its production process
in operation. Miroslaw Capiga, the new president of HK, hopes that the
minister's support will help in negotiations with the banks. Although the
company regularly pays the credit interest, the banks may refuse to postpone
the payments and may terminate the credit contract. In that case, the mill
will automatically be put into liquidation, according to Capiga. Currently,
having obtained a guarantee of power supplies for the coming 6 months, it is
negotiating terms for debt repayment with its creditors and plans to lay off
about 2,200 employees by the end of the year. (Rzeczpospolita, p. B3) M.
S.-C.
