Kalistani Major History

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Socialist Investors Organize National Defense ConsortiumNew Generation of Socialist Investors seek to reopen Privatized National Industries
Kaliburg, Ananto
October 8, 4517


Delores DiVerdes, newly Elected Chairwoman of the National Defense Consortium

A new generation of Socialist Businessmen and women, who have come of age during the Privatization era, have organized to intervene in the economy.  Known as the "Kalistani Group", this group of socialist investors who have made their money over the past decade by exploiting the ups and downs of Kalistani stocks, as well as international finance, have organized a new conglomerate known as the "National Defense Consortium." 

"We have followed the example set in Valruzia of building a national defense corporation with the aim of plugging into a larger, northern Selayan group," said board Chairwoman Delores DiVerdes, of Lhasa, Neveras.  "Our aim is to complete our purchase of the distressed assets of the former nationalized Industries, with the aim of reopening them and operating them under the same structure as under the Nationalization Edicts, and supplying the National Government with the raw materials and strategic resources that are necessary to modernize and operate our military and to provide our people with employment.  If the Government shall not be moved to do so, we will do so without them."

The Kalistani Group has already purchased more than 90 percent of the assets of the former KalNaFerCo, and has reopened the iron mines in Neveras as well as one of the major foundries in Odufaray.  Additionally, they have acquired 82% of the assets of the KalNaPeCo, including leases for exploration and drilling in the Ananto Strait.  The Group has also purchased assets of the former KalNaTexCo and KalMilInCo.  "We have been able to quietly buy up these properties as they were parted out by their capitalist owners.  We have had to keep our activities quiet over the last decade, so as to acquire as much of this former national property as cheaply as possible.  The most we have paid for any operation is estimated to be less than 10% of its value, which has allowed us to acquire much more of the property than if it had been sold at book value.  The Consortium will hold these assets in trust and will begin opening them now as soon as possible."

The Kalistani Group said they intend to employ workers primarily from the National Service Program, which continues despite privatization.  "We will pay workers from the NSP according to the military payscale.  It is also our intention to continue to operate these assets and acquire more as we may, until such time that the Government sees fit to renationalize the property.  At that time, we will seek only reimbursement for our costs of purchase."

Meanwhile, the National Defense Consortium shall also begin working with the Valruzian group and other Selayan defense groups to begin working on defense modernization.  "We look primarily to the Seleyan Group for technology transfer.  We can begin selling materials necessary to build national defense weaponry, as well as provide the fabrication plants to create new weaponry.  We do not have the power to reopen the National Shipyards, as they remain properties of the Republican Government, but we will seek leases to use the Kalibug Shipyards to begin building new ships.  In addition, we have begun the building of an aircraft plant to compliment the factories previously belonging to KalMilInCo, and with new designs, will begin supplying aircraft to the open market.  It shall be our policy to always consider the needs of the Republic first, and we shall offer precedence to all Kalistani National Contracts, to be sold at cost to the Republic.  Our profit and growth will come from overseas sales."

This development represents a degree of return to normalcy for the Republic following the incredibly disruptive privatization edicts passed by the Rightist Government nearly 10 years ago.  The National Defense Consortium will operate as a publicly traded company, traded on the Kalsie under the stock symbol NDC.  The founding members of the Consortium, representing 14 socialist-dominated companies, collectively control 96 percent of stock, with the remaining 4% being offered for public sale at an opening price of 32.45 KRB a share.  Each of the 14 companies have each elected a single trustee, who shall be the single holder of their respective company's stake in the Consortium, and shall comprise the Board of Directors.  No individual company may divest stock in the consortium without the affirmative vote of all of the other members of the board, and none of the Governing Articles of the Consortium may be altered without unanimous vote of the Board.  Additionally, the Board will always have right of first refusal on all stock divestment which has been agreed upon by the board, and if any company represented by a Trustee should itself dissolve, the stock in the consortium is to be divided among the remaining members.  Finally, Socialists must always be the Majority stakeholder in the Consortium, and the Director of the Board must always be a member of the Socialist Party of Kalistan.

Representatives of the National Defense Consortium have been sent to Valruzia to begin consulting with Valruzian Defense Industries.