Metalloinvest might buy back its shares from VTB for later sale in IPO
MOSCOW. April 27 (Interfax) - Iron and steel holding Metalloinvest itself might in future buy back its shares from VTB for subsequent sales in an initial public offering, and management is holding such negotiations with the bank, Metalloinvest principal beneficiary Alisher Usmanov said in an interview with Rossiya 24 television.
"It's unlikely that I will buy them, I'm not interested because I have my 50% of this company. The other shareholder [the family fund of Andrei Skoch] either, as far as I know," Usmanov said when asked about the possibility of buying back the shares from the bank.
"I think the company itself might consider this at some stage, and they are working out this issue with the bank - that the company might acquire this stake," Usmanov said, adding that this asset was highly liquid.
"We will soon or later take [the company] onto the capital markets, to an IPO. The company could make a good profit on this," Usmanov said, referring to the sale of a treasury stake. "But for now it will be a reserve liquid asset on the balance sheet. We would support such an initiative from management," he added.
VTB, which at one time financed the formation of the holding, is a "welcome shareholder" for the company, but this stake is a financial investment for the state bank and sooner or later it will be sold, Usmanov said.
VTB "was always not just a bank, but a family institution to which we always turned for help, and the bank always met us halfway, supported us in all financial undertakings, and we are very grateful to it for this," Usmanov said.
VTB bought Vasily Anisimov's 20% stake in Metalloinvest in December 2011, reportedly for $2.5 billion, of which $1.9 billion went toward paying off a loan received earlier.
Usmanov owns 50% of Metalloinvest through Gallagher Holdings Limited. Vladimir Skoch, father of State Duma deputy Andrei Skoch, holds 30% in the holding through Seropaem Holdings Ltd and VTB owns 20% through Coalco Metals Ltd, acquired from Vasily Anisimov in December 2011. Usmanov's partner in Gallagher is Farhad Moshiri with 10%.
The holding's main production subsidiaries are Lebedinsky Mining & Processing (MGOK) , Mikhailovsky Mining & Processing (MGOK) , Oskol Electrometallurgical Combine (OEMK) and Urals Steel.
