ZAGREB, Jan 21 (Hina) - Croatian President Stjepan Mesic on Tuesday spoke with representatives of the Russian Mecelj company as a possible strategic investor in the Sisak based Zeljezara ironworks. Mecelj has pledged to guarantee to
preserve the current 1,700 jobs and in fact to employ new workers.
ZAGREB, Jan 21 (Hina) - Croatian President Stjepan Mesic on Tuesday
spoke with representatives of the Russian Mecelj company as a
possible strategic investor in the Sisak based Zeljezara
ironworks. Mecelj has pledged to guarantee to preserve the current
1,700 jobs and in fact to employ new workers. #L#
Mecelj is present in seven Russian regions as well as on the
European market. It employees about 100,000 workers.
Its representative Trigubko Viktor Aleksandrovic told journalists
today one could not yet talk about the final results of negotiations
regarding Zeljezara but that Mecelj was prepared to purchase the
ironworks and to guarantee assistance to it and its employees.
"The offer by Russia's Mecelj, along with the four that arrived...
will be considered seriously," Croatian Labour and Welfare
Minister Davorko Vidovic, present at the talks, told journalists.
Sisak-Moslavina County prefect Djuro Brodarac said that at the
moment the most important matter was to keep all the present workers
in their jobs and that Mecelj had offered to even increase the
number of jobs available. "This offer is indeed serious... unlike
some others that we have received," he said.
Five companies have submitted their offers to purchase the
ironworks by January 15 -- Mecelj, Slovakia's Zeleziarne
Podbrezova, Italy's Zinchitalia, Switzerland's Dufercoe, and
Austria's Olmax.
They all asked for the Croatian government to guarantee gas and
electricity supplies, their price, and a grace period of 90 days.
(hina) sp ha