April 6 (SeeNews) - The new management board of Croatia's highly indebted concern Agorkor and the country's government have congruent plans for the company's future and agree that restoring the confidence of creditors, suppliers and customers is key, the government said.
The chief restructuring officer of Agrokor, Antonio Alvarez III, met with prime minister Andrej Plenkovic to discuss the company's current state and restructuring plans late on Wednesday, the government said in a statement following the sit-down.
"During the conversation, I found that our plans coincided with the advice that Mr. Alvarez is giving the company," Plenkovic said.
Alvarez told the media that his aim is not just to save Agrokor, but to see it prosper. He urged Croatian citizens to buy from its retailers and participate in the concern's recovery.
"We need to keep working and ensure that employees continue to provide customer service, and to encourage Croatia to buy from us and save Agrokor", he said, according to the statement.
Alvarez added that the situation in Agrokor is one of the most difficult he has faced, but said he has hope things will pan out as planned.
Late on Tuesday, Agrokor confirmed the appointment of Alvarez as its chief restructuring officer.
Antonio Alvarez III, a managing director at consulting firm Alvarez & Marsal, has played an integral role in several high-profile turnarounds and performance improvement projects and brings more than 25 years of experience serving public and privately owned companies, according to information from Alvarez & Marsal's website. His father is one of two founders of the company which was established in 1983.
On Sunday, VTB, Sberbank, Erste&Steiermaerkische Bank, Privredna banka Zagreb, the local unit of Austria's Raiffeisenbank, Zagrebacka Banka and Agrokor signed a standstill agreement to help the company stabilise its operations and service its debt to suppliers.
The government, on the other hand, adopted an emergency draft bill to shield the country's economy and its financial system from big corporate failures. The parliament is expected to vote on the draft law on Thursday.