BlackRock reduces Petropavlovsk stake to 9.89%
MOSCOW. Sept 6 (Interfax) - BlackRock Inc has reduced its stake in Petropavlovsk plc to 9.89%, the gold miner said in a statement.
BlackRock owned 10.96% of Petropavlovsk as of May 28, when ownership was last disclosed. The fund owned 12.1% as of the start of the year.
BlackRock was Petropavlovsk's biggest shareholder as of May. Co-owner Peter Maslovsky controlled 7.9% as of the middle of last year, but his actual stake has not been disclosed as it is held via trusts in which he does not have voting rights. Peter Hambro, another co-owner and chairman of the bard of directors, owned 4.62%, of which 1.19% is held as loan collateral by JP Morgan. Other major shareholders are Vanguard Precious Metals and Mining Fund (4.13%), Capital Research Management Company (3.22%) and Norges Bank (3.15%).
Petropavlovsk commercially develops gold deposits - the Pokrovsky mine, Pioneer and Malomyr - in the Amur region, and it launched its fourth project - Albyn - at the end of last year. The alliance also owns several licenses for gold-bearing sections in the Krasnoyarsk territory and other Russian regions. According to the Russian Gold Producers Union, the group was Russia's second-largest gold producer after OJSC Polyus Gold in 2011.
