Kerimov firms make offer to Polyus Gold shareholders, Yuzhvayev, Mkrtchan ready to accept
MOSCOW. Sept 30 (Interfax) - Sacturino Limited and its parent company Wandle Holdings Limited, which own 40.22% of the shares in Polyus Gold International Limited , have made an offer to buy the No. 1 Russian gold miner's other shareholders out, Sacturino in a statement.
The beneficiaries of these firms are the Suleyman Kerimov Foundation, set up by Suleyman Kerimov; and Kerimov's son, Said, who has the mandatory right to appoint management, directors and conduct the business of Wandle Holdings Ltd.
As expected, the offer price is $2.97 per share, which values the company at $9 billion, and the 59.78% stake not owned by Kerimov at $5.4 billion. The premium on the average share price on the LSE just before the offer was announced is 3%, and that on the average price for three months is 7%. Polyus Gold closed trading on Wednesday at 192.5 pence a share or $2.91.
Sacturino said that Receza Limited and Wamika Trading Limited, controlled by Gavriil Yushvayev, former co-owner of Wimm-Bill-Dann, which own 19.99% of Polyus Gold between them; and Lizarazu Limited, owned by Oleg Mkrchan, co-owner of Industrial Union of Donbass, which also owns 19.99%, have already agreed to accept the offer.
The deal will depend whether Sacturino will succeed in the course of the offer in collecting 90% of the 53.8% of shares it does not already own. According to regulations on Jersey, where Polyus Gold is domiciled, and in the UK, where its shares are traded, that in order to squeeze minority shareholders out it is necessary first to collect, in the course of a voluntary offer, 90% of the shares not owned by the offeror.
Other major Polyus Gold shareholders are Vasily Anisimov, founder of the Coalco Group and a former co-owner of Metalloinvest (1.76%); Konstantin Goloschapov, former co-owner of SMP-Bank (1.97%); Sergei Lepeshkin, co-owner of Akropol Bank (4.11%); the businessman Musa Palankoyev (2.85%); and Chengdong Investment Corporation, a subsidiary of Chinese sovereign fund CIC International (4.7%).
