Elektrim and Acciona row proves bad for Mostostal

The on-going feud between the two strategic shareholders in construction company Mostostal Warszawa, conglomerate Elektrim and Spanish construction firm Acciona, is pushing the company deeper and deeper into the red. Elektrim and Acciona, holding 28.4% and 24% of shares, respectively, are currently fighting over the dismissal of Mostostal Warszawa president Neil Balfour. He had been recommended to the post by Acciona, but at today's meeting of the supervisory board Elektrim will once again try to dismiss him, after already attempting to do so 10 days ago. The shareholder rift is resulting in the deterioration of the company's financial results, with the first three quarters of last year bringing Mostostal losses of zl.22.1 million, while in 1998 the firm recorded a net profit of zl.13.7 million. Analysts believe the situation will not improve as long as there are two strategic investors in the company, each using it for their own purposes. An anonymous analyst cited the example of Elektrim selling off its subsidiary Fermstal to Mostostal Warszawa, even though, according to the analyst, Mostostal would do better without it. Elektrim sources, meanwhile, charge Acciona with attempts to lower the value of the construction firm, so as to acquire Elektrim's stake at a lower price, a transaction analysts say looks likely to take place perhaps as early as this year. (Gazeta Wyborcza, p.32) T.J. Year 2000 experiences unprecedented growth in number of GSM subscribers The three GSM operators active on the domestic market together gained 2.96 million new subscribers last year, a record high in the history of Poland's fledgling GSM services sector that made its debut not quite five years ago. GSM operators in Poland together spent more than zl.207.5 million on advertising, with estimates of the cost of obtaining one new mobile phone customer at about zl.700 for Plus GSM, zl.300 for Idea Centertel and somewhere in between for Era GSM. Despite the record-breaking growth in subscriber levels, analysts predict that next year's figures could be lower, since there is no way, experts assert, that the market can sustain its present rate of growth, simply given the size of the Polish market. (Prawo I Gospodarka, pp.1,3) A.D.