Minister of Industry Manuel Ruiz Soria naturally knew that his request was sowhat excessive, but he also understood that this was the best ti to acquire these enterprises.
Despite this acquisition order requiring 5.2 billion Pesseta in funds, if it had been before the economic crisis, even tripling the acquisition funds might not have been enough to acquire these enterprises.
The existing equipnt, technology, and assets of these enterprises alone far exceed 5.2 billion Pesseta, which ans that as long as the Spanish Governnt can acquire these enterprises, it would undoubtedly be a profitable deal.
Moreover, these enterprises could provide crucial support to various sectors in Spain. If this acquisition order could be completed, according to the estimates of the Ministry of Industry, Spain’s future industrial developnt would be significantly boosted, with better prospects of becoming a truly industrialized nation.
"Minister Ruiz, with all due respect, the governnt does not have such funds available to the industrial departnt for acquiring these enterprises." Even before Pri Minister Prim could express his opinion, Minister of Finance Ewald could no longer remain seated and promptly stood up to oppose Minister of Industry Ruiz’s proposal.
Whether or not the Spanish Governnt has these funds available is one thing. Even if there were, Ewald would certainly not agree to the acquisition plan proposed by the industrial departnt.
Because the need for acquiring enterprises to enhance their foundation is not limited to just the industrial departnt, and the scope of acquirable enterprises is not confined to those outlined by the industrial departnt.
If the acquisition order from the industrial departnt were entirely approved, the finance departnt would then face a continuous stream of acquisition orders from other departnts.
Even though Ewald knows that acquisitions are beneficial for Spain, the problem is that money cannot be spent recklessly.
"Your Excellency, we are confident that following this acquisition, our nation’s industrial developnt will rapidly improve." Minister of Industry Ruiz disregarded Finance Minister Ewald’s opposition and continued to express his optimism about acquiring enterprises to Pri Minister Prim:
Especially in the areas of heavy industry and chemical industry, obtaining assets from these foreign enterprises would significantly enhance us.
After absorbing these foreign assets, within a year, our steel production could surpass 200,000 tons and iron production could surpass 500,000 tons.
Given five years, I am confident that steel production could exceed 1 million tons, and iron production could exceed 3 million tons, thereby closing the gap with other major powers."
"1 million tons of steel production? 3 million tons of iron production?" Pri Minister Prim was not srized by the grand goals set forth by Minister of Industry Ruiz but instead questioned these targets.
In terms of steel production, indeed, 1 million tons of steel and 3 million tons of iron would bridge the gap with other European Powers.
Considering that other European Countries are mired in severe economic crises, eting this target ans Spain’s industry could once again rank in the top five in Europe.
However, the question remains, is it truly beneficial for Spain’s industry to achieve such a significant advancent in such a short ti?
The current economic crisis has already proven that overly rapid industrial and economic developnt is not beneficial. Only steady growth, suitable to Spain’s specific situation, is the best way to develop economically and industrially.
Spain indeed has sufficient funds for acquisitions and there is indeed a hope of raising steel production to millions of tons within five years.
But doing so, aside from blindly pursuing steel production, offers little benefit and instead could beco a burden for the country’s developnt.
Pri Minister Prim is not dismissive of the acquisition plan for foreign enterprises. However, acquisitions should align with Spain’s actual developntal needs rather than adding all valuable enterprises to the acquisition list for the sake of so grand, illusory goal.
As ti ticked by, Pri Minister Prim remained thoughtful, giving no response.
Minister of Industry Ruiz grew anxious, stepping forward in an attempt to continue persuading Pri Minister Prim, but was waved off by the Pri Minister.
"The acquisition plan is indeed necessary, but there needs to be a thorough reconsideration of the enterprises listed for acquisition." After several minutes of contemplation, Pri Minister Prim finally offered his opinion:
Additionally, the acquisition targets should not only focus on factories in various European countries but also extend to healthcare enterprises and private research laboratories.
"Minister Ewald, how much funding is the governnt currently able to allocate for acquiring foreign enterprises?"
Upon hearing Pri Minister Prim’s inquiry, Ewald imdiately responded: "Your Excellency, the current funds available for allocation by the Ministry of Finance are 3.2 billion Pesseta.
There is still a portion of the year’s tax revenue yet to be transferred to the Ministry of Finance, but considering other departnt budget allocations and our liabilities, the maximum amount of redirectable funds is 2.1 billion Pesseta."
Pri Minister Prim shook his head, evidently not satisfied with the share of redirectable funds: "The Ministry of Finance is to gather an additional 900 million Pesseta, totaling 3 billion Pesseta for this acquisition plan.
For this acquisition plan, I hope for a judicious selection of the factories and enterprises that need to be acquired. Spain’s developnt does not require overly ambitious goals; we need to progress steadily based on our current foundation."
"Yes, Your Excellency," Minister of Finance Ewald nodded, daring not to question Pri Minister Prim’s order in the slightest.
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