There are no plans to sell Mol shares owned by the state; they comprise an extra security reserve for the financing of the state budget – the Ministry for National Economy stated on Thursday.

This was a statement prompted by a written answer by Minister for National Economy György Matolcsy in response to a question by independent MP István Kolber, who emphasized that the Mol share package, purchased formerly by the state, serves strategic objectives in addition to being a financial reserve. It may provide a relatively low-cost resource in case of the deterioration of the external environment or financing hurdles.

The Ministry of National Economy stresses that what the written response implies is a remote possibility for a theoretical future situation when external turbulences that cause severe financing bottlenecks might occasion the consideration of utilizing such a resource. “Based on the above, it would be nonsensical to enter into speculations on sale, and consequently, into discussions of a minimum amount.”

As the Ministry pointed out, by purchasing Mol shares the primary objective of the Government was to fortify the regional role of the company and reduce energy dependence. In addition, these are liquid blue chip shares which can be considered as a strategic financial reserve.

On the other hand, the press release also stressed that potentially the utilization of these shares as a resource could be carried out by transactions other than a sale: market financing could be obtained parallel to maintaining strategic ownership rights.

(Ministry for National Economy)