26.11.2013

Assets of companies with more than 50% state participation in the capital amount to BGN 29 billion as of 30 September 2013. 127 companies have reported profits in Q3 totaling BGN 480.4 million, of which BGN 264.3 million positive financial result reported by BEH EAD. 92 companies have generated losses totaling BGN 261.8 million, of which BGN 113 million of NEC EAD, Deputy Minister of Finance Lyudmila Elkova stated at a conference on Regulatory Framework and Management Policy of Companies with More Than 50% State Participation, organized by Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs Daniela Bobeva. Deputy Minister Elkova added that state owned companies and enterprises' debts totaled BGN 9.835 million, of which BGN 5.579 billion short term liabilities.

Data for 2012 and the first nine months of 2013 show that it is necessary the State, as a sole owner and stakeholder, to take measures to strengthen the financial discipline and control over the compliance of the supervised entities, Deputy Minister Elkova reckons. She specified that an in-depth analysis should be made of the present problems encountered in the management of the state participation linked with the negative results reported, the lack of transparence and publicity of the management, weak control of the authorities exercising the rights of the State, etc.

Adoption of appropriate legislative changes to solve the problems through rehabilitation, restructuring, or preparation and launching of privatization procedures in 2013 or the years after were among Lyudmila Elkova's recommendations. According to her one of the ways to ensure liquidity of the state owned enterprises is to change the dividend policy of the State. She commented that the estimated revenues from dividends in the 2014 budget amounted to BGN 92.680 million. The savings from the reduction of the dividend from 80% to 70% would be BGN 13.240 million, which can be used by the companies and enterprises as working or investment capital, Elkova added.