No major Uralkali stockholders have told co. of share sale plans
MOSCOW. Sept 10 (Interfax) - Major stockholders in potash-producer Uralkali have not notified company management of plans to sell its stock, the company's CFO and acting general director, Viktor Belyakov, said during a conference call.
"As concerns stockholder structure, we never discuss rumors, moreover, those that pertain to stockholders. We have no official information from our stockholders concerning a possible change to stockholder structure," Belyakov said.
Rumors that Suleyman Kerimov might sell his Uralkali stake gained traction last week. The main stockholder in AFK Sistema , Vladimir Yevtushenkov, who is negotiating in partnership with RussNeft chief Mikhail Gutseriev, the former had of Gosstroy, Vladimir Kogan, and businessman Arkady Rotenberg, have been identified as contenders. According to business daily Kommersant, Kerimov wants to get $4.5 billion for his 21.75% stake (the market value is around $3.4 billion).
Yevtushenkov, Gutseriev representatives, and Rotenberg have denied the reports.
As of August 20, the Suleyman Kerimov Foundation owned 21.75% of Uralkali, Filaret Galchev owns 7% and Anatoly Skurov owns 4.8%. Another 12.5% of the company's shares are held by Wadge Holdings, which is controlled by Kerimov, Skurov and Galchev. Wadge Holdings has issued bonds to China's Chengdong Investment Corporation that are convertible into 12.5% of common shares in Uralkali. The bonds were issued in 2012 and mature in 2014. Uralkali's free float is 53.95%.