Treasury declares null and void original Ruch tender

Treasury Minister Aldona Kamela-Sowinska told Gazeta Wyborcza yesterday that a 1997 tender for the sale of a 10% stake in Poland's largest press distributor, Ruch, has been declared null and void. The tender had stalled after a Warsaw court forbade the sale. The court order was a response to a complaint filed by Polish-French press publishing consortium Hachette Distribution Services (HDS), who in 1996 signed a preliminary agreement with the Treasury Ministry concerning the privatization of the State-owned Ruch. HDS representative Andrzej Kacperski declined to comment on Kamela-Sowinska's latest decision. Treasury Ministry spokesperson Beata Jarosz told Prawo i Gospodarka that the Ministry is planning to start the privatization process all over again, with an adviser expected to be chosen by the end of this month. (Gazeta Wyborcza, p. 19; Prawo i Gospodarka, p. 4) M.T.K.