ECONOMY Minister Tomáš Malatinský was assigned to initiate discussions over the sale of a state-owned stake in Slovak Telekom (ST), the largest telecommunications operator in Slovakia. According to a document adopted by the Slovak government in mid March, Malatinský is to discuss possible further steps related to the sale with representatives of the National Property Fund (FNM), and the majority shareholder in ST, Deutsche Telekom, as well as the management of ST, the SITA newswire reported.
Malatinský has until June 30 to suggest to the government what to do with the state-owned minority stake in ST. Since privatisation in 2000, Deutsche Telekom has held a 51-percent stake in ST. A 34-percent stake belongs to the government, represented by the Economy Ministry. The remaining 15 percent is owned by the FNM.
According to the adopted document, the Economy Ministry and the FNM do not have a direct impact on the management and direction of the company in the existing setup of corporate relations in ST, despite a fair relationship with the majority shareholder.
The media has speculated that the Fico government may use revenues from the sale of the minority stake of ST to fund its plan to create a single, state-owned health insurance company.
22. Apr 2013 at 0:00 | Compiled by Spectator staff
