Empire Rising: Spain

Chapter 213: Chapter 154: Acquisition Plan and Talent Recruitment

Minister of Industry Manuel Ruiz Soria naturally knew that his request was somewhat excessive, but he also understood that this was the best time 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 equipment, technology, and assets of these enterprises alone far exceed 5.2 billion Pesseta, which means that as long as the Spanish Government 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 development would be significantly boosted, with better prospects of becoming a truly industrialized nation.

“Minister Ruiz, with all due respect, the government does not have such funds available to the industrial department for acquiring these enterprises.” Even before Prime 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 Government has these funds available is one thing. Even if there were, Ewald would certainly not agree to the acquisition plan proposed by the industrial department.

Because the need for acquiring enterprises to enhance their foundation is not limited to just the industrial department, and the scope of acquirable enterprises is not confined to those outlined by the industrial department.

If the acquisition order from the industrial department were entirely approved, the finance department would then face a continuous stream of acquisition orders from other departments.

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 development will rapidly improve.” Minister of Industry Ruiz disregarded Finance Minister Ewald’s opposition and continued to express his optimism about acquiring enterprises to Prime 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?” Prime Minister Prim was not mesmerized 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, meeting this target means 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 advancement in such a short time?

The current economic crisis has already proven that overly rapid industrial and economic development 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 become a burden for the country’s development.

Prime Minister Prim is not dismissive of the acquisition plan for foreign enterprises. However, acquisitions should align with Spain’s actual developmental needs rather than adding all valuable enterprises to the acquisition list for the sake of some grand, illusory goal.

As time ticked by, Prime Minister Prim remained thoughtful, giving no response.

Minister of Industry Ruiz grew anxious, stepping forward in an attempt to continue persuading Prime Minister Prim, but was waved off by the Prime 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, Prime 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 government currently able to allocate for acquiring foreign enterprises?”

Upon hearing Prime Minister Prim’s inquiry, Ewald immediately 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 department budget allocations and our liabilities, the maximum amount of redirectable funds is 2.1 billion Pesseta.”

Prime 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 development 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 Prime Minister Prim’s order in the slightest.