State Saves Bulgaria Railroads Company from Bankruptcy

The state will return immediately part of the tax credit it owes to the Bulgarian State Railroad (BDZ)company to save it from inevitable bankruptcy.

This was announced Friday by the Transport Minister, Petar Mutafchiev, in an interview for the Novinar Daily.

During the next week the company must pay loans of BGN 26 M to large western financial institutions.

Nearly BGN 20 M must be paid to the German KfW Bankengruppe, which financed the delivery of the new Siemens trains.

Another BGN 6 M the railroad company must transfer to the World Bank on a loan financing the scheme of arrangement from 1995.

In the syndicates opinion, there is a possibility that salaries may be delayed (BGN 15 M a month), and BDZ remains with no money for exploitation expenses.

The syndicates are worried that this may lead to bankruptcy.

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