
SE Bordnetze does not agree with the accusations of receiving illegal state aid and demands the annulment of the corresponding decision of the Competition Council.
This is stated in a press release issued by SE Bordnetze in the context of the recently published decision of the Competition Council, according to which the company allegedly benefited from illegal state aid from local public authorities. The company went to court to appeal the decision of the CC. “SE Bordnetze is one of the local businesses that can be proud of being part of a group of international companies with strong corporate governance that requires full compliance with local laws, including in the area of competition,” the company said in a statement. It should be noted that SE Bordnetze is a member of the Sumitomo international group and is a resident of the Orhei subzone of the Balti free economic zone. The company invested about $40 million in the construction of the largest electrical wiring plant in Moldova, creating almost 3,000 jobs. The decision of the Competition Council states that SE Bordnetze received state aid from the mayor's office of Orhei and the municipal enterprise "Housing and Communal Service of Orhei", which was not authorized by the competition authority. In particular, the investor was exempted from paying rent for premises and a land plot located in the Orhei subzone of the Balti FEZ. The refusal of the local authorities to receive payment for rent was made to compensate for the difference between the advance paid by the enterprise for the construction of the plant and the amount of costs estimated by an independent appraiser for the construction of the building. As a result, according to the CC, the mayor's office of Orhei and the municipal enterprise "Housing and Communal Service of Orhei" conceded the payment of rent by about 268.3 million lei. At the same time, the rental price was below market value. The CC qualified this concession as illegal state aid, the beneficiary of which was SE Bordnetze. According to the decision of the Competition Council, the Ministry of Finance will have to verify the correctness of the guarantees accepted by the Orhei Mayor's office in accordance with the memorandum, lease contract and mortgage contract concluded between the Mayor's office, Orhei Housing and Communal Services and SE Bordnetze. The decision of the CC was made on May 25 and published on July 7 on the website of the institution.// 11.07.2022 — InfoMarket