El-Dystrybucja receives exclusivity in G-8 tender talks

Power distribution company El-Dystrybucja, controlled by entrepreneur Jan Ku lczyk, has received exclusive negotiation rights for the purchase of a stake in the G-8 group. Treasury Minister Wieslaw Kaczmarek announced his decision in Krakow on Wednesday, although the Ministry's press office was not informe d until yesterday. The exclusivity was granted for three weeks during which El-Dystrybucja and the Treasury Ministry should agree on the terms of the tr ansaction. The German consortium of E.ON Energie AG and E.dis Energie Nord A G, as well as Tractabel of Belgium, are also participating in the tender. La st week it seemed that the German consortium would win the tender particular ly as Economy Minister Jacek Piechota mentioned granting the company exclusi vity rights - information later denied by Kaczmarek. BRE Bank also intends t o join the fray as it signed agreements last week on the purchase of a 1% st ake in El-Dystrybucja as well as an agreement with Energia SA and Kulczyk Ho lding on the bank's participation in the G-8 privatization process. (Rzeczpo spolita, p. B4) A.Z.