--- title: "Zarea Hotel sale highlights wider reform of state firms" url: https://moldova1.md/p/90091/zarea-hotel-sale-highlights-wider-reform-of-state-firms published: 2026-11-12T17:22:47Z language: en author: "Dumitru Petruleac" section: "Economic" source: moldova1.md --- # Zarea Hotel sale highlights wider reform of state firms > Moldova’s failed attempt to privatise the Zarea Hotel has renewed debate over state asset management, with Economy Minister Claudiu Năsui saying high prices and cumbersome bidding rules may deter investors. ![](https://storage.moldova1.md/images/cd67eef6-5fa1-4ef9-a6b3-8b4c98e1c80b.jpg) Moldova’s failed attempt to privatise the Zarea Hotel has renewed debate over state asset management, with Economy Minister Claudiu Năsui saying high prices and cumbersome bidding rules may deter investors. **Price and red tape may discourage investors** The Zarea Hotel in central Chișinău was put up for auction at an asking price of €5.3 million (approx. 106 million MDL). However, the October 20 auction was cancelled after no investors submitted applications, despite a two-month extension of the registration deadline. *“At that price, no one will buy it. The Zarea Hotel may be in a similar situation,”* Năsui said during Moldova 1’s *Eu și Uniunea Europeană* programme. The minister said the asking price was not the only potential obstacle. High financial deposits, extensive paperwork and multiple approval requirements could also discourage prospective buyers. **A broader reform of state-owned enterprises** Năsui said the government should assess state-owned enterprises as a portfolio rather than approach each privatisation as an isolated transaction. *“What we should do is develop a broader vision for all state-owned companies and manage them as a portfolio. The idea of handling things piecemeal, selling a hotel here and a small factory there, will not solve the underlying problems,”* he said. The government is preparing a package of reforms for state-owned enterprises, but the minister declined to disclose details before its official launch. Asked about the timetable, he said the package was expected to be presented in the coming weeks. The proposed changes will also address the management of enterprises that remain under state ownership, including the appointment of independent boards, reducing their membership and limiting political interference. **Independent management and professional expertise** Năsui acknowledged that scandals involving the management of state-owned companies had occurred in Moldova, but said similar problems had also affected Romania and other EU countries. *“We have a cold, not an exotic disease. We know how to treat a cold. We just need to implement the right treatment,”* he said. Asked whether state-owned enterprises would be managed by professional executives recruited locally or internationally, the minister said privatisation to European business groups could also create opportunities for Moldovan professionals working abroad. He argued that European investors could appoint Moldovan executives who already had experience working for international companies and understood the local business environment. *“When a company like that buys something in Moldova, it will want to send someone it trusts, someone who knows both the place and the country. And those people will be Moldovans,”* Năsui said. **Privatisation as a tool for economic growth** The minister said privatisation should not be pursued simply to transfer public assets into private ownership. Its purpose, he argued, should be to improve economic efficiency, attract investment and make businesses more competitive. *“Privatisation should not be carried out for the sake of privatisation. You privatise because this is the system that leads to greater economic prosperity,”* he said. Năsui compared the economic systems of the Eastern and Western blocs during the Cold War, arguing that differences in ownership structures were central to their contrasting economic performance. He said retaining management models inherited from the Soviet period would not deliver the results associated with competitive Western economies. He also linked the reform of state-owned enterprises to the prospect of attracting Moldovan professionals back home. Greater investment and the development of productive businesses could create jobs and encourage skilled workers who have built careers abroad to return. *“The diaspora could come back, particularly when there is much greater economic dynamism and companies have an interest in sending people here to build businesses using the expertise they have gained in the West,”* Năsui said. **The failed Zarea Hotel auction** The Zarea Hotel, located at 4 Anton Pann Street in Chișinău, was offered for sale at an initial price of €5.3 million (approx. 106 million MDL). The auction scheduled for October 20 was cancelled because no prospective buyers submitted applications. One of the obstacles identified by the Public Property Agency (APP) was the participation deposit, officially set at 10.6 million MDL (approximately €0.53 million), representing 10% of the starting price. APP Director Ion Dodon said prospective buyers had to transfer the required amount to the agency's account before they could participate in the auction. Following several unsuccessful privatisation attempts, the agency announced plans to simplify the bidding process. Proposed measures include reducing the participation deposit, accepting bank guarantees, extending the deadline for signing sale contracts and digitising procedures. The agency also intends to provide investors with more detailed information about the assets offered for sale. 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