Breaking News:
As its merger unfolds with state-owned oil company Rosneft, Gazprom will not acquire Yuganskneftegaz, former key production unit of YUKOS oil company, Dmitry Medvedev, chairman of the Gazprom board, was cited as saying by Mayak radio. The Gazprom-Rosneft merger would go through in January, the station report said.
Reacting to the news, Dmitry Mangilev of investment company Prospect said Yuganskneftegaz could remain state property or become Gazprom’s “granddaughter.” The statement “could bring new intrigue to the market,” he said.
“If Yuganskneftegaz is not included in the Gazprom-Rosneft merger, this can mean that Rosneft is not the final buyer, and Yuganskneftegaz will change hands again,” the analyst told RBC.
Gas monopoly Gazprom would gain control over Yuganskneftegaz, perhaps indirectly, he added. The one-time YUKOS arm could become part of a new state-owned company in which foreign investors such as China’s CNPC could have strategic stakes, Mangilev said.
ZENIT Bank’s Yevgeny Suvorov believed Yuganskneftegaz was excluded from the merger so not to change a fusion already approved. Yuganskneftegaz might join the merged company at a later stage, however, or remain under direct government control.
Anton Zatolokin, analyst with MDM Bank, said Yuganskneftegaz was not included so as to protect Gazprom against claims by YUKOS shareholders challenging the sale of the company’s key production unit. Gazprom would not become a direct owner of Yuganskneftegaz soon, but would control the YUKOS subsidiary. Zatolokin said Gazprom was the only Russian company that could afford to pay for Yuganskneftegaz.
On December 19, a 76.79 percent stake in Yuganskneftegaz was sold at auction to Baikalfinancegroup for RUR 260.75 billion (about $9.3 billion) to settle YUKOS’s tax debts. Later, Rosneft purchased Baikalfinancegroup.
Earlier reports said the merger had been postponed due to acquisition of Yuganskneftegaz by Rosneft. The timeframe and scheme of the merger between Gazprom and Rosneft would be determined after an investigation into Rosneft’s deal with Yuganskneftegaz, Russian economy minister German Gref told reporters on Wednesday.
He said the merger was postponed until late January, noting it was necessary to decide on the scheme and configuration.
On December 23, Rosneft said it had acquired the company Baikalfinancegroup – surprise winner of the December 19 Yuganskneftegaz auction. The auction’s second participant – Gazpromneft – did not struggle for the YUKOS unit. As it transpired later, Gazpromneft, a subsidiary of Gazprom, had changed hands before the sale.
Postponing the Rosneft-Gazprom merger creates uncertainty over Gazprom’s investment program and financial plans for 2005. Russian industry and energy minister Viktor Khristenko has announced the plans would be examined by the Russian government after the two companies had come together.
@Tamer: Wie befürchtet, ist heute das gleiche passiert wie gestern. Erst runter, einsammeln und wieder rauf zu 2 Euros. Trotzdem ist immernoch die Gefahr da, das es plötzlich auschlägt, egal in welche Richtung! Die Volatilität darf man nicht vergessen.
Bin echt mal gespannt wies nächstes Jahr weiter geht.
greetz bammie
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