This week the Government is expected to hear an extended report on the progress of the project for the privatization of the Bulgarian Telecommunications Company (BTC) following debates on the negotiations with the potential buyers of KPN/OTE at the parliamentary Legal, Budgetary and Economic Committees. The Government is expected to give an opinion on whether BTC should be sold to the KPN/OTE Dutch-Greek consortium and say whether it is ready to move to Parliament - if the deal is closed - draft amendments to the laws on privatization, public procurement and telecommunications as requested by the potential buyer. During the discussion at the Economic Committee, the Transport and Communications Minister, Antoni Slavinski, who also heads a working group on the privatization on BTC, said the company owed the World Bank, the European Investment Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development some USD 110 million. If BTC is sold, the buyer will assume the debt. Slavinski explained that the money from the banks has been used for upgrading the networks for international and long-distance calls. The MPs also discussed a new price offered by the consortium, which at USD 600 million is USD 90 million higher than the initial price