Kulczyk finances TPSA purchase through foreign loans

Kulczyk Holding, which together with France Telecom owns a stake in dominant fixed-line telecom operator Telekomunikacja Polska S.A., took out loans at the end of 2000 totalling $1.2 billion to finance the purchase of shares in TPSA, daily Rzeczpospolita has learned from unofficial sources. Insiders say this was the main reason for the sudden increase in the number of foreign loans to Polish companies in the fourth quarter of 2000, which equalled $2.7 billion. Kulczyk paid zl.5.3 billion in October 2000 for its share in TPSA. Kulczyk spokesman Andrzej Wisniewski declined to comment on the daily's revelations. (Rzeczpospolita, p.B5) M.T.