Zrenjanin-based Jugoremedija might go out of bankruptcy – KPMG estimates the factory's value at EUR 17 million

This autumn will prove to be fateful for the pharmaceutical factory Jugoremedija, whose status remains undetermined four years after opening the bankruptcy proceedings.

As Novosti finds out, the bankruptcy judge at the Commercial Court of Zrenjanin, Aleksandar Stoiljkovski, has ordered the Belgrade subsidiary of the Austrian financial leasing company Heta Real Estate to remove the flaws from reorganization plan for the ruined Zrenjanin pharmaceutical company, submitted to the Court back in 2013, within a month, i.e. by mid-August.

In fact, the plan was prepared by Hypo Bank, as its largest creditor. The bank approved a EUR 7.5 million loan to Jugoremedija. After the bankruptcy proceedings were opened, the problem of the value of the factory's property arose. Due to different estimates, the Court stopped the carrying out of the reorganization plan.

The dilemma whether Jugoremedija is worth EUR 22 million, as initially estimated by administrative receiver Radovan Savic, EUR 68 million, as estimated by the Belgrade Institute of Court Experts, or EUR 17 million, as estimated by the audit company KPMG, was solved by Judge Stoiljkovski.

He accepted the latter estimate, and as the bank transferred its receivables worth a billion dinars to Heta Real Estate in the meantime, it's up to them now to decide on Jugoremedija's fate.

It's interesting to note that the Austrian financial leasing company announced the sale of receivables from Jugoremedija this spring. It's safe to assume that, behind this move, there's an intention of backing away from the mess, that is, of recovering as much as they could of the billion dinar receivables to bankers and at the same time collect their fee. The court hasn't been notified of the progress of this sale.

Novosti, however, have learned from reliable sources that Heta Real Estate is negotiating with an interested buyer, who wants to take over Jugoremedija and continue to manufacture pharmaceuticals in Zrenjanin. It's not out of the question that this could be Union Medic, a private company of Nikola Selakovic, a baker from Novi Sad, who, rented Jugomedia's production facilities for a monthly amount of EUR 30,000 in 2014. He also took over the licenses, employed around a fifty workers and recovered the production of numerous medications.

Jugoremedija a.d. Zrenjanin

KPMG d.o.o. Beograd

Heta Real Estate Beograd

Privredni sud u Zrenjaninu

Union-medic Novi Sad

Addiko bank ad Beograd

Jugoremedija

Union Medic

Heta Real Estate

Hypo Bank

pharmaceutical factory Zrenjanin

Aleksandar Stoiljkovski

Radovan Savic

Institute of Court Experts

KPMG

Nikola Selakovic