Municipal enterprises likely to float shares on WSE

The first few months of 2003 should mark the beginning of major changes to t he way municipal companies are structured. The Warsaw Water Heating Enterpri se, the Municipal Water and Sewage System (MPWiK) and the City Refuge and Cl eaning Service (MPO) will be transformed into joint-stock companies, which o pens the path for them to be privatized. One proposal is to put MPWiK shares on the Warsaw Stock Exchange (WSE). According to Jacek Zdrojewski, deputy pr esident of Warsaw, privatization of these services will not be easy, as city authorities want to maintain overall control over these enterprises. "We can not sell a water system, to a single private investor as has a monopoly. A b etter solution is to sell its shares on the stock exchange," said Zdrojewski . This move will allow the enterprise to secure additional funds to help it develop without necessarily challenging who controls it. Analysts believe th at shares in MPWiK would be an attractive proposition for investors. Municip al companies do not go bankrupt and return constant profits. Last year MPWiK had a turnover of over zl. 450 million. (Puls Biznesu pp.1, 7) A.L.