Rosatom working on issuing yuan, Islamic bonds, selects cos for IPOs
MOSCOW. Aug 5 (Interfax) - The supervisory board of Rosatom Group has given the greenlight to raise foreign financing, and work is underway on preparing the issue of bonds in Chinese yuan and Islamic bonds, or sukuk, by subsidiary Atomenergoprom (AEP) to finance the construction of the Akkuyu nuclear power plant in Turkey, the Russian state nuclear corporation's deputy CEO for economics and finance, Ilya Rebrov said in an interview with industry publication Strana Rosatom.
The company is also exploring raising financing through initial public offerings. A first analysis showed that a number of organizations will not be ready before 2027, Rebrov said.
"With IPOs, a number of risks arise related to corporate governance and disclosure of information amid the fulfilment of national objectives. In light of this, Medscan Group [a leader in Russia's private healthcare sector] and nine other companies working in composite materials, information technology and gold mining have been selected with potential managing banks for preparation for IPOs in 2026 and beyond," Rebrov said.
He said several companies are being considered as possible candidates if their financial results in 2025-2026 demonstrate stable growth and if they draw interest from potential investors in preliminary discussions and meetings.
Nuclear industry organizations have a number of potential restrictions to going public, he said.
"Deals with organizations that might own nuclear materials and nuclear facilities, as well as with companies that have strategic significance are not allowed without the approval of the Russian president or the government commission for control over foreign investment in Russia," Rebrov said.
"Right now the main issue is the priority and speed of implementation of critically important projects. Consequently, it's important to balance the corporation's budget without factoring in additional state support, moreover, with reduced support," Rebrov said.
In terms of internal resources for 2025-2030, Rosatom's EBITDA is expected to grow by 1.2 trillion rubles, while investment needs are expected to grow by 4.5 trillion rubles, he said.
"The picture for 2025 is even more depressing. Requests from companies for investment exceeded the possibilities of financing sources by four times," Rebrov said.
Rosatom reported earlier that its investment program totalled 1.456 trillion rubles in 2024.
