The Romanian Savings House-CEC social capital reached 650 million RON following a capital boost of 500 million RON (about 150 million euro) organized by the Finance Ministry on December 29, a CEC press release issued this week says. It is the first such boost since 1989 and it came shortly after the Bucharest Government ordered a halt to the CEC privatization.
The capital increase and the 2006 financial results improved CEC’s funds to reach about 1,200 million RON, the equivalient of 17% of the total assets by the end of last year.
In 1996-2006, the bank contributed to the state budget with a profit tax and dividends totaling some 200 million euro.
The Competition Council said it expected more details about the capital infusion to prove it was not about public funds assistance to a state company.
By the end of 2006, the Government ordered the privatization of CEC be halted after one of the potential buyers, Hungarian bank OTP decided to withdraw its bid while a second, the National Bank of Greece, offered 560 million euro for 69.9% of the company. The head of the privatization commission, Finance minister Sebastian Vladescu, considered the offer as too small.
HotNews.ro, Jan 4, 2007
Sunday, January 07, 2007
Parole considered for convicted miners' leader
A Bucharest Court is due to decide whether to approve parole for Miron Cozma, a former miners’ union leader involved in violent protests last decade, after a special penitentiary commission approved recommended the move on Wednesday. The commission’s approval is consultative.
It is the third time when the possibility of letting Cozma, who led the so-called “miners’ crusades” resulting in dozens of victims and the toppling of a government in the nineties, is considered. If approved, Cozma would leave prison six months earlier.
This comes after the High Court decided in December 2005 to combine the sentences for Cozma’s involvement in the two miners’ crusades, to which ex-President Ion Iliescu, a former Communist apparatchik, has also been linked.
The first sentence was set to seven years and 11 months - already paid - for the 1991 crusade to Bucharest, which resulted in the fall of the-then government. The second sentence of ten years is related to the Costesti miners’ crusade in February 1999.
HotNews.ro, Jan 4, 2007
It is the third time when the possibility of letting Cozma, who led the so-called “miners’ crusades” resulting in dozens of victims and the toppling of a government in the nineties, is considered. If approved, Cozma would leave prison six months earlier.
This comes after the High Court decided in December 2005 to combine the sentences for Cozma’s involvement in the two miners’ crusades, to which ex-President Ion Iliescu, a former Communist apparatchik, has also been linked.
The first sentence was set to seven years and 11 months - already paid - for the 1991 crusade to Bucharest, which resulted in the fall of the-then government. The second sentence of ten years is related to the Costesti miners’ crusade in February 1999.
HotNews.ro, Jan 4, 2007
Health census postponed in Romania
A national program to evaluate the health condition of the Romanian people was postponed for the second quarter of 2007 as Romanian MPs could not agree with the spending of 900 million RON (about 300 million euro) for the sake of a ministerial order.
Health minister Eugen Nicolaescu must now review the text of the draft legislation and turn it into a governmental decision before the “census of the sick” is applied.
Nicolaescu announced his initiative two months ago as a means to collect the necessary data to prevent the spread of high-impact diseases among Romanians. But “we must now restart all procedures, which will take at least 2-3 months. Normally, the program would start in April and end in June 2008”, minister Nicolaescu has told Hotnews.ro.
Parliamentarians, doctors and hospital managers have challenged the program as they considered it non-essential for the priorities of Romania’s health system.
The plan was aimed at evaluating the health condition of the entire Romanian population, insured or not. The money would result from a vice tax which drew more funds to the state budget than expected in 2006, according to Nicolaescu.
HotNews.ro, Jan 4, 2007
Health minister Eugen Nicolaescu must now review the text of the draft legislation and turn it into a governmental decision before the “census of the sick” is applied.
Nicolaescu announced his initiative two months ago as a means to collect the necessary data to prevent the spread of high-impact diseases among Romanians. But “we must now restart all procedures, which will take at least 2-3 months. Normally, the program would start in April and end in June 2008”, minister Nicolaescu has told Hotnews.ro.
Parliamentarians, doctors and hospital managers have challenged the program as they considered it non-essential for the priorities of Romania’s health system.
The plan was aimed at evaluating the health condition of the entire Romanian population, insured or not. The money would result from a vice tax which drew more funds to the state budget than expected in 2006, according to Nicolaescu.
HotNews.ro, Jan 4, 2007
Health census postponed in Romania
A national program to evaluate the health condition of the Romanian people was postponed for the second quarter of 2007 as Romanian MPs could not agree with the spending of 900 million RON (about 300 million euro) for the sake of a ministerial order.
Health minister Eugen Nicolaescu must now review the text of the draft legislation and turn it into a governmental decision before the “census of the sick” is applied.
Nicolaescu announced his initiative two months ago as a means to collect the necessary data to prevent the spread of high-impact diseases among Romanians. But “we must now restart all procedures, which will take at least 2-3 months. Normally, the program would start in April and end in June 2008”, minister Nicolaescu has told Hotnews.ro.
Parliamentarians, doctors and hospital managers have challenged the program as they considered it non-essential for the priorities of Romania’s health system.
The plan was aimed at evaluating the health condition of the entire Romanian population, insured or not. The money would result from a vice tax which drew more funds to the state budget than expected in 2006, according to Nicolaescu.
HotNews.ro, Jan 4, 2007
Health minister Eugen Nicolaescu must now review the text of the draft legislation and turn it into a governmental decision before the “census of the sick” is applied.
Nicolaescu announced his initiative two months ago as a means to collect the necessary data to prevent the spread of high-impact diseases among Romanians. But “we must now restart all procedures, which will take at least 2-3 months. Normally, the program would start in April and end in June 2008”, minister Nicolaescu has told Hotnews.ro.
Parliamentarians, doctors and hospital managers have challenged the program as they considered it non-essential for the priorities of Romania’s health system.
The plan was aimed at evaluating the health condition of the entire Romanian population, insured or not. The money would result from a vice tax which drew more funds to the state budget than expected in 2006, according to Nicolaescu.
HotNews.ro, Jan 4, 2007
Bulgaria shuts two nuclear reactors
Bulgaria has paid the EU accession price by shutting down two reactors at the Kozloduy nuclear plant, a condition imposed by the Brussels officials for security reasons. Bulgaria will thus have to cease its electricity exports towards the Balkans.
Two hours before officially joining the EU on January 1st, 2007, Bulgaria shut for good, although not too happy about it, the third and fourth reactors in the Kozloduy nuclear plant, each with a 440 MW power.
The added production capacity of the two reactors was roughly half of Bulgaria's export capacity (some 7.6 billion MW before the shutting). The reactors' shutting may lead to a 19% price growth for electricity.
Still, two modern reactors, of 1,000 MW each, remain operational while the Bulgarian government prepared to demand compensations for renouncing to the 3rd and 4th reactor. EU seems to agree to pay 550 million euros as compensation.
Bulgaria also signed an agreement to build a new 2,000 MW nuclear plant in Belene, with the Russian Atomstroyexport company as partner. The new plant is scheduled to come in use in 2012.
HotNews.ro, Jan 4, 2007
Two hours before officially joining the EU on January 1st, 2007, Bulgaria shut for good, although not too happy about it, the third and fourth reactors in the Kozloduy nuclear plant, each with a 440 MW power.
The added production capacity of the two reactors was roughly half of Bulgaria's export capacity (some 7.6 billion MW before the shutting). The reactors' shutting may lead to a 19% price growth for electricity.
Still, two modern reactors, of 1,000 MW each, remain operational while the Bulgarian government prepared to demand compensations for renouncing to the 3rd and 4th reactor. EU seems to agree to pay 550 million euros as compensation.
Bulgaria also signed an agreement to build a new 2,000 MW nuclear plant in Belene, with the Russian Atomstroyexport company as partner. The new plant is scheduled to come in use in 2012.
HotNews.ro, Jan 4, 2007
European economies in new year's eve
The European Union's statistical office Eurostat has published the first comparison data on the economies of the 27 member states, including newcomers Romania and Bulgaria, according to BBC. Compared to the most important economies in Europe, Romania is far from reaching a high performance, although it received the "functional market economy" title in 2004, the Eurostat document shows.
In absolute values, the gross national product (GNP) per capita in Romania was 3,657 euros, compared to the 23,402 euros average in the European Union two years ago.
Romanian economy would represent 0.7 - 0.8% of the European states' added GNPs (99 billion euros in 2005, out of 10,847 billions in EU's total).
GNP per capita / EU average
Romania - 34% of the EU average
Latvia - 47% of the EU average
Poland - 50% of the EU average
Denmark - 124% of the EU average
Ireland - 137% of the EU average
Luxembourg - 248% of the EU average
HotNews.ro, Jan 4, 2007
In absolute values, the gross national product (GNP) per capita in Romania was 3,657 euros, compared to the 23,402 euros average in the European Union two years ago.
Romanian economy would represent 0.7 - 0.8% of the European states' added GNPs (99 billion euros in 2005, out of 10,847 billions in EU's total).
GNP per capita / EU average
Romania - 34% of the EU average
Latvia - 47% of the EU average
Poland - 50% of the EU average
Denmark - 124% of the EU average
Ireland - 137% of the EU average
Luxembourg - 248% of the EU average
HotNews.ro, Jan 4, 2007
Romanian "bodegas" report best profits in Eastern Europe
Extensive real estate properties and huge amounts of money - that’s how most Romanian dignitaries and politicians boosted their wealth in 2006 as they became shareholders to various firms or received donations or inherited fortunes, their wealth statements published this week show.
PM Calin Popescu Tariceanu managed to maintain his position as one of the country’s richest people, his updated wealth statement shows. It documents that the prime minister cared for his wealth with shares in various profit-making companies in the banking, car dealing, leasing, wine making and financial investments industries.
Tariceanu’s stake portfolio rose by 616m970 RON by December 30, 2006, with more than a third (260,000 RON) resulting from Automotive Trade Services, Romania’s main Citroen importer.
For his part, deputy PM Marko Bela reported an agricultural field and an apartment in the city of Cluj last year, while Economy minister Varujan Vosganian tripled his bank accounts to about 100,000 euro, became the majority shareholder in the Euroeconomic company and added 48,000 euro from the sale of a parcel of land among others.
And Transport minister Radu Berceanu boasts no less than five apartments and houses as well as several bank accounts amounting nearing 1 million euro after he received 800,000 euro from the sale of a 1.34 mln euro parcel in Bucharest which he sold two years before.
HotNews.ro, Jan 4, 2007
PM Calin Popescu Tariceanu managed to maintain his position as one of the country’s richest people, his updated wealth statement shows. It documents that the prime minister cared for his wealth with shares in various profit-making companies in the banking, car dealing, leasing, wine making and financial investments industries.
Tariceanu’s stake portfolio rose by 616m970 RON by December 30, 2006, with more than a third (260,000 RON) resulting from Automotive Trade Services, Romania’s main Citroen importer.
For his part, deputy PM Marko Bela reported an agricultural field and an apartment in the city of Cluj last year, while Economy minister Varujan Vosganian tripled his bank accounts to about 100,000 euro, became the majority shareholder in the Euroeconomic company and added 48,000 euro from the sale of a parcel of land among others.
And Transport minister Radu Berceanu boasts no less than five apartments and houses as well as several bank accounts amounting nearing 1 million euro after he received 800,000 euro from the sale of a 1.34 mln euro parcel in Bucharest which he sold two years before.
HotNews.ro, Jan 4, 2007
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