The Uruguayan government said on Wednesday it has rejected a British bid to buy a 49 percent stake in the country's Pluna airline from Brazil's debt-laden Varig due to lack of information about the buyer.

The Uruguayan government is the other main stakeholder in Pluna and its representatives on the airline's board of directors blocked a bid by Britain's Ashmore Global Fund Ltd, an emerging market specialist fund, to acquire Varig's share, saying they did not know enough about the firm.

"Varig and Ashmore are going to make another presentation to Pluna to meet the requirements of Pluna prior to authorizing the sale of a share package," Uruguayan Transport Minister Gabriel Pais told local radio.

"Once this is done ... the board of directors of Pluna will once again study whether or not to authorize the sale," he added.Last month Pluna's chief executive Jorge Neves said the carrier was also studying a bid from Argentine flagship Aerolineas Argentinas.Varig, Brazil's top international carrier, is struggling to pay off $2 billion of debt.

(From Reuters, Dezembro 02, 2004)

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