After winning judicial battle, Telekom prepares for privatisation

This has been confirmed for Radio Free Europe, Economic Development Minister Valdrin Luka, adding that the cost of the process will also be paid by the company dealtxos.

The ArbitrazhiTribunal has decided in Kosovo's favour in the case of the privatisation of Kosovo Telecom by imposing AtjeAxhos, tore up all the cost of this whole process worth about $2 million”.

“Finally, Kosovo in this case triumphed because it really has been an excess burden, not allowing Telekom to develop, but neither the withdrawal of foreign investors, in case of the privatisation of Telekom”, Luka told Radio Free Europe.

Even Kosovo President Hashim Thaci has congratulated, as he has said, the victory of the state of Kosovo at the Arbitrazhi Court against the company AtjeAxos.

In a post on Facebook network, President Thaci wrote that “Kosovo will always welcome foreign investment, but we never allow it to be misused as a state. The right and all the arguments in the case of the Aexos indictment were in our favor”, he wrote.

The company "Axos é Capital '%s' had filed indictments at the address of the Government of Kosovo for reasons, reportedly failing to implement the Kosovo Post-Telekom privatisation contract.

In 2013, the Government of Kosovo had announced the winner in the purchase of a 75 per cent stake in PTK company "Axos ʹ Capital" worth 277m euros.

But, this process had remained unfinished due to disagreements in the Kosovo Assembly, which was followed by the Aexos' indictment of the Government of Kosovo.

Currently, Kosovo Telecom is in deep financial crisis and risks defaulting, as the accumulated debt has reached 60m euros.

But, the Arbitrazhi Court's decision, according to Minister Luka, will facilitate Telekom's future, in order to launch the preparation process for privatisation.

He said one of the main obstacles to the preparation of the Telekom privatisation process has been the dispute between the company dealtxos and the Government of Kosovo and the need for a restructuring of spending reduction in this company.

The first obstacle already ended, while the second is under way. We've been in negotiations with the board. Members of the Board have come up with several proposals for restructuring Telekom, which we are watching and I believe we will soon make decisions like Government in reducing spending in this company, to meet the second condition”, Luka stressed.

Otherwise, experts on economic issues have called the process difficult to restore Kosovo Telecom. Economics expert Ismail Kastrati has told Radio Free Europe that poor management has brought this company ahead of default.

The Arbitrazhi Court's decision saves PTK from an additional financial burden. But Telekom is ahead of large numbers of workers' bankruptcy, with nepotism and clientelemism. The profits of this company are not invested in contemporary technology. So it's actually hard to revive and update Telekom”, Kastrati said.

However, the goal of the Government of Kosovo is for the privatisation process of Telekom to begin after two years.