BT Invest, the Austrian firm owned by VTB bank of Russia, submitted a binding bid for Bulgartabac of EUR 100.1 million, which is EUR 100,000 above the minimum set by the Bulgarian privatisation agency, Sofia News Agency reported.
BT Invest is the sole bidder for the former state monopoly. Its bid reportedly was announced on 29 Aug., the agency said on its Novinite.com website. The offer for nearly 80 per cent of Bulgartabac includes pledges to buy 5,000 metric tons of Bulgarian tobacco per annum for five years and to invest the equivalent of EUR 3.6 million in the company over two years, the agency reported.
Separately, the Focus News Agency reported Bulgarian tobacco unions are planning to protest the privatisation. Yuliy Manoylov, chairman of the Tobacco Industry National Trade Union at Podkrepa Confederation of Labor, was cited saying the privatisation process has not respected the interests of the Bulgarian tobacco industry. Political parties are calling the shots, Manoylov reportedly said. (pi)