On Wednesday, February 26, Bulgaria's Economy Minister, Petar Dimitrov, announced that one of the two main bidders for the purchase of leading Bulgarian steelmaker Kremikovtzi, namely Ukraine-based Smart Group, has withdrawn its offer for the mill.
Smart Group said that its withdrawal was due to a lack of support among the mill's creditors.
The other main bidder, Brazilian steelmaker Companhia Siderurgica Nacional (CSN), is still interested in buying or operating the plant, according to Mr. Dimitrov.
On the other hand, Bulgaria's Ministry of Energy and Economy has received a letter from the Russian company Finprominvest expressing its general interest in Kremikovtzi. According to Vasil Yanachkov, a trade union leader at Kremikovtzi, Finprominvest is registered in Finland, and has both Russian and Western shareholders.
In October, 2008, Kremikovtsi shut down some of its furnaces due to a lack of imported raw material supplies after Ukrainian tycoon Konstantin Zhevago cancelled a production deal with the plant blaming the Bulgarian government and the receivers for lack of support.
Kremikovtsi employs some 5,000 people and provides income for another 90,000 indirectly.