Transoil submits bid for Freight One Company auction
MOSCOW. Oct 11 (Interfax) - Russian railway operator Transoil has submitted a bid to participate in an auction offering 75% plus two shares in Russian Railways subsidiary Freight One Company, Transoil said in a press release.
"The bid was accepted by the agent authorized to carry out the auction - Transcreditbank - on October 10," the release said.
Transoil submitted its 5 billion ruble deposit for the auction on October 7. The auction is due to take place on October 28.
Transoil General Director Andrei Gamon said participation in the auction was "an important element of one of the possible directions for strategic development - establishing a diversified transport and logistics company."
Transoil transports oil freight by rail and occupied 23.3% of the market in Russia as of March 1. The company transported 59 million tonnes in 2010. It has 29,400 tankers and 36 locomotives.
Transoil is considered one of the main contenders for the Freight One shares. Two other companies are also ready to go after the shares - Vladimir Lisin's UCL Holding (through Independent Transport Company (ITC)) and Neftetransservis (NTS filed a request with the Federal Antimonopoly Service together with its industrial transport company Skovorodino). The fourth contender Globaltrans said it would not take part in the auction due to the volatility on international financial markets.
"Our ITC made its bid to participate two to three weeks ago," UCL Holding PR Chief Dmitry Baukov told Interfax.
Freight One Company is Russia's leading railway transporter. The company had 235,400 railcars under its management as of June 30. The company transported 302.3 million tonnes of freight in 2010.
The starting price for the Freight One shares has been set at 125.37 billion rubles. Contenders need to submit their deposits of 5 billion rubles by October 14.