Ako povedal pre The Slovak Spectator dňa 10.1. 2010 Juraj
Karpiš z INESS, v zásade nie je dôvod, aby štát vlastnil akékoľvek podiely
v podnikoch, ktorých hlavnou činnosťou je predaj služieb, ktoré vie zabezpečiť
súkromná sféra.
THE
CHANGE of drivers at the wheel of government in July re-opened the issue of
privatisation in Slovakia. Compared to the negative attitude of former prime
minister Robert Fico, the Iveta Radičová government wants to sell stakes held
by the state in selected companies. But in its four-year programme it has
excluded privatisation of what it calls strategic companies.
Even
though any final decision has yet to be made, analysts, experts and politicians
are already calling for the proceeds from privatisation to be used to patch up
holes in the old-age pension saving scheme and in the general government
budget.
Many
analysts support the privatisation plans of the Radičová government.
“Basically there is no reason for the
state to own any stakes in companies whose main activity is the sale of
services which can be secured by the private sphere,” Juraj Karpiš, analyst
with the Institute of Economic and Social Studies (INESS) told The Slovak
Spectator. “Making business in these segments [heating, telecommunications,
transport, etc.] does not belong among the basic functions of the state.”
“Moreover, the state is an ineffective
administrator of companies with regards to discordance in the motivations of
taxpayers and state officials installed into managerial positions. This is why
ineffective handling of public funds, cronyism and corruption occurs more often
in state companies,” Karpiš added.
The
analyst believes that privatisation would, on the one hand, mean an end to
ineffective management in these companies and, on the other hand, privatisation
proceeds would cover part of the state’s expenses.
“This means that on constant public
expenditures, we will have to pay less in taxes and levies,” said Karpiš. “Thus
we welcome privatisation.”
After
several waves of privatisation following the fall of the communist regime, the
state still holds stakes in companies operating in transport, energy, heating,
forestry, health care, postal services and other segments. It holds them either
via the National Property Fund (FNM) state privatisation agency or via
individual ministries responsible for various sectors of the economy. In the
recent past, Bratislava Airport and the railway companies have been most
frequently cited as potential targets for privatisation.
Both
the FNM and the Economy Ministry have already submitted reports about the
operation of companies in which they hold stakes. Now the reports are awaiting
discussion by the Slovak cabinet.
Unlike
the FNM, the ministry does not directly propose any privatisation.
The
FNM proposes to sell its stakes in Slovak Telekom, heating plants as well in
regional bus companies. Based on current nominal values, this could raise
hundreds of millions of euros. The FNM sees the sale of the stakes as a way to
raise money from the sale itself as well as by the removal of the public
sector’s influence and thus the acceleration of commercial activities in
respective segments, according to the report. The privatisation agency also
proposes the sale of the stakes as part of the government’s plans to dissolve
the FNM itself.
According
to the ministry report, the Ministry of Economy holds 100-percent stakes in two
companies: the Nuclear Decommissioning Company (JAVYS) and the crude-oil
pipeline operator Transpetrol. It also holds a 34-percent share in Slovak
Telekom.
“All
the companies report in the long run a positive economic performance and a
positive return on capital,” the ministry wrote in its report, as cited by TASR
on January 3. “They pay out dividends into the state budget annually, apart
from Transpetrol. The companies’ results do not indicate an unambiguous need
for their privatisation.”
On
the other hand, the FNM proposes to sell the 15-percent stake, with a nominal
value of €130 million, that it holds in Slovak Telekom. A majority stake of 51
percent is owned by private operator Deutsche Telekom.
“From
the viewpoint of the FNM, the sale of the stake presents the most rational
alternative,” the FNM wrote in its submission, recalling the recent
liberalisation of the Slovak telecom market and the decreasing market share of
the company. “With regards to development on telecommunications markets in
general, growth in the value of the stake held by the FNM and the state is
improbable. A positive development in profitability and thus also in expected
dividends is not probable. The FNM together with the Economy Ministry do not
have, as minority shareholders .. any real reach on the heading of the
company.”
The
ministry agrees with the FNM’s arguments, pointing to the decreasing position
of the one-time monopoly operator.
“In
case of the sale of the whole stake held by the Slovak shareholder, i.e. the
stakes of the ministry and FNM, the Ministry of Economy proposes to sell a
portion of it to a strategic investor and a portion via the capital market,”
the ministry writes, as quoted by TASR.
According
to the SITA newswire, Deutsche Telekom has declined to comment on any
privatisation plans for now.
Other stakes for sale
The
FNM also proposes to sell its 100-percent stakes in all six local heating
plants (in Trnava, Žilina, Košice, Martin, Bratislava and Zvolen). Their
aggregate nominal value is around €166.7 million. The FNM argues that the
heating companies are not able to cover their operating costs despite the
extensive sale of real estate and are forced to draw on outside sources to
secure their further existence. The FNM also points to the investments the
companies need to remain competitive and meet increasingly tough environmental requirements.
The FNM proposes to sell the heating companies in the form of an international
tender. Their sale was part of the programme of the 2002-2006 Mikuláš Dzurinda
government, but was not carried out due to the early parliamentary election
held in 2006.
The
FNM also proposes to sell minority stakes in regional bus companies. It holds
stakes of between 37.84 percent and 44.01 percent in 17 bus companies, with an
aggregate nominal value of around €72.13 million.
Among
other companies in which the FNM has stakes it wants to sell is the Bratislava
Stock Exchange (BCPB), in which it holds 75.94 percent, the Kúpele Sliač spa
(67 percent) and the Polyclinics Tehelná in Bratislava (100 percent).
The
FNM has not proposed, for now, the sale of stakes it holds in Letisko MR
Štefánika – Airport Bratislava as well as water utility companies.
Based
on the applicable legislation, the FNM also leaves it to the Slovak cabinet to
decide on the stakes it holds in companies which act as natural monopolies.
These
companies include three regional power distributors in which the FNM holds
51-percent stakes, gas utility SPP, in which it holds 51 percent, and Slovak
electricity grid operator Slovenská Elektrizačná Prenosová Sústava (SEPS), in
which the FNM holds 100 percent.
Jana Liptáková
The
Slovak Spectator, 10.1.2011
