Romanian President Says Some State-Owned Companies May Go Bankrupt

"I don't rule out the possibility of letting certain state-owned companies go bankrupt," said Basescu, declining to give any examples and saying a list of such companies ahs not been made yet.

"A list hasn't been made but the Government, unable to pay off the debts of all these companies, will have to allow creditors to cover what they are due from these companies," said the president.

Basescu said the political intention to no longer finance inefficiency is clear.

"We can no longer tolerate gangrene in Romania's economy. The Government bailing out any state company will be a thing of the past," he said.

Romania and the International Monetary Fund have agreed on a list of 15 state-owned companies to be placed under private management. IMF mission head Jeffrey Franks told MEDIAFAX in an interview the list of the 15 companies will include nuclear company Nuclearelectrica, hydropower generator Hidroelectrica, as well as railway companies CFR Marfa, CFR Calatori and CFR Infrastructura.

Asked whether a mere replacement of the managers would be sufficient to turn these companies profitable, Franks said the government will also have some of the board members replaced.

In May, the IMF official announced the government would cede management over 30 to 40 of the country's largest companies.

The authorities in Bucharest are expected to hire an international HR company to select the future managers.

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