Novatek buys back another 138,420 shares for $1.1 mln
MOSCOW. Jan 11 (Interfax) - Novatek bought back 138,420 shares, some in the form of global depositary receipts (GDR), in the period December 28 to January 8, the gas producer said.
The purchases were made on the open market.
Based on the average GDR price - $78.89 each - Novatek spent about $1.09 million on the shares and GDRs.
On June 7, 2012, the Novatek board of directors approved a one-year buyback program in respect of ordinary shares of Novatek and/or Global Depositary Receipts representing shares (each GDR representing 10 shares) in the aggregate amount of up to $600 million. The programs have been renewed on an annual basis, most recently in May this year.
Novatek stopped repurchasing shares in May 2014 in view of heightened volatility and the crisis in the financial markets. It planned to resume the buyback once the situation with financing for the Yamal LNG project became clear. In May 2015, management decided to extend the program for another year. Novatek Equity (Cyprus) Limited, the wholly owned subsidiary of Novatek, buys the shares.