Bouchouareb ; “We haven’t spent a single Dinar for the retrieval of Annaba-based ArcelorMittal plant”
The Minister of Industry and mines, Abdeslem Bouchouareb, has dispelled as mendacious certain press reports on the conditions for the acquisition of ArcelorMittal Annaba plant (formerly El Hadjar) by the Algerian state.
Mr Bouchouareb described as “lies” the claim that the Algerian government had spent $ 700 million to acquire 21% of a company whose value is estimated at 65 million dollars by PWC.
“We have not spent a single Dinar for these 21%,” Abdeslem Bouchouared pointed out on Wednesday on the sidelines of the tripartite meeting held in the city of Biskra in south-eastern Algeria.
The Minister further evoked the 2016 finance bill, saying the latter will allow the private operators to create and manage business and industrial parks on condition that they are not set up on agricultural lands.
“The finance bill 2016 proposes to give private operators the opportunity to develop, build and manage industrial and business parks on lands belonging to them provided that they are not agricultural lands,” the minister explained at the 18th Tripartite (Government-UGTA Union-Employers) meeting.
He also announced that 31 industrial parks out of 49 across the country will be made available in October.
In this connection, Mr Bouchouareb underscored that the National Agency of Land Intermediation and Regulation (ANIREF) has provided Walis (governors) with comprehensive maps of the sites to enable them to grant plots to project initiators.
Through these measures, the Government will be rigorous in the management of the parks, he said, citing the provision of the 2015 Complementary Finance Act, which imposes taxes on owners of unexploited lands after three years from the granting date.