Parmalat expects investment approval

Parmalat Romania the branch of the Italian foods giant that went through a massive financial scandal last year will wait until June to have its investment plan for the Romanian market approved, that is until the parent company is relisted on the Italian stock exchange. “At the moment, the top priority of the Italian parent company is to refloat on the stock exchange, which is scheduled for June-July so that I will get approval for the investment projects for Romania after the listing,” said Giampaolo Manzonetto, general manager of Parmalat Romania. Italy-based Parmalat, one of the main foods groups in the world filed for bankruptcy protection in 2003, after having unveiled over 10bn euros in debts. The company has recently announced plans for relisting on the stock market. Although Parmalat announced lower revenues for 2004, its brands have not lost much of their value as a result of the scandal. Parmalat Group’s revenues amounted to nearly 4bn euros in 2004, 650 million euros less than in the year before. Parmalat’s main brand in Romania is Santal, one of the leading brands on the market of natural juices. The Santal-branded products are made at the company’s facility in Iasi. ZF