EC says ?no? to new Polish shipyard deadline

The European Commission has refused to extend the deadline for the privatisation and restructuring plan for three Polish shipyards. EC Spokesman Jonathan Todd confirmed that today marks the deadline for Poland to submit viable plans for the restructuring of the Gdansk Shipyard and privatisation of Gdynia and Szczecin Shipyards.

A delegation of representatives of the shipyards? trade unions travelled to Brussels yesterday to appeal to the EC to give Poland more time for preparing and filing by Poland documents necessary to save the three shipyards from the obligation to repay hundreds of millions of Euros received in state aid since Poland?s accession to the EU in 2004, and most likely declare bankruptcy as a result.

The EC Spokesman said that the decision of the Commission would depend on the quality of the proposals filed before the EC today. If the restructuring and privatisation programs were not in compliance with the EU regulations, a negative decision would be made within a few weeks.

The Polish Minister of the State Treasury, Aleksander Grad told the Polish Lower House, the Sejm, today that the European Commission would receive three restructuring and privatisation proposals from three private investors. Today, the Sejm passed a resolution appealing to the European Commission that today?s deadline for the submissions be delayed.