WSiP tender cancelled, publisher to consolidate market

It appeared that the tender for the purchase of a 51% stake in school books publisher Wydawnictwa Szkolne i Pedagogiczne (WSiP) was won by Muza. However, on February 3 the Treasury Ministry changed its decision announcing that it decided to annul the tender. "Following the analyses of the submitted bids, none of them met the privatization requirements," the announcement read. The Ministry claims that WSiP, "Has a special cultural and educational mission and therefore the privatization of the publisher should guarantee the continuation of this mission." WSiP's president Jan Ruranski told Rzeczpospolita that the fact whether the firm will enter the Warsaw Stock Exchange (WSE) will depend on the decision of the Treasury Minister and WSE itself. The Treasury also envisages WSiP's participation in restructuring process of other publishers owned by the state. (Gazeta Finansowa, Feb. 8-14, p. 4) A.Z.