"This measure is valid for one week as of today, and is due to progress in negotiations between the company and the Agriculture Ministry on the subsidies the ministry has to pay,” the company said in a statement Tuesday.
The work group formed of representatives of the Payment Agency, the Agriculture Ministry and of Protan company compared in the last five days the documents related to subsidies. On Monday, the agency confirmed it paid Protan 1.8 million lei (EUR1=RON3.7522) of the RON15 million that needed to be paid, and decided to pay other RON1.7 million by the end of the week, the quoted source said.
"The Agriculture Ministry proved they want to solve the situation, but excessive bureaucracy does not enable a quick solution. We expect a protocol unfolding payment of the owed subsidies. Still, we decided to resume the activity for one week, to prove we are a reasonable negotiating partner. Agriculture minister Dacian Ciolos committed to solve the subsidies issue by the deadline,” Protan general manager Cristina Miu said in the statement.
On Monday, Protan suspended its activity in all its eight subsidiaries, citing "a financial blockage due to unpaid subsidies" worth over RON15 million the Agriculture Ministry owes to the company for services performed since 2006 until now.
“We can talk about an ecologic disaster in the upcoming period,” Protan’s general manager Cristina Miu said. She mentioned Romania has no other companies able to replace Protan.
A week ago, Miu said the Ministry of Agriculture owes Protan over EUR4 million. At the same time, the Justice Ministry was threatening to freeze the company’s accounts over non-payment of taxes worth EUR1 million.
“Basically, the state is taxing us for money it does not pay,” Miu said.
Romanian meat and milk processors said they will have to shut down plants unless Protan reconsiders its decision to halt activity, because they will not be able to process related animal waste.
On October 2, the environmental agency informed SC Protan SA that several due investments were not unfolded, even though the company had requested the revision of the environment authorization, in accordance with article 25 of Government Emergency Ordinance 152/2005 approved through Law 84/2006.
The Bucharest Court sustained Thursday the request for suspension formulated by the company SC Protan SA, pending the final solution of the case. In addition, the company challenged in court a memo of the environmental agency which suspended the environmental license held by Protan Popesti Leordeni. A court decision is pending in the matter. Protan obtained in court the suspension of the environmental agency’s decision halting the company’s activity for 30 days in the unit in Popesti Leordeni, near capital city Bucharest.