DIXY says 2-bln-ruble VTB credit is for current operations
MOSCOW. March 15 (Interfax) - Russian supermarket chain OJSC DIXY Group is taking out a VTB credit of 2 billion rubles to finance ongoing operations.
An earlier report that the funds would go to refinancing exchange bonds was based on incorrect commentary by a company representative.
"The company group DIXY is carrying out ambitious plans to develop its chain that require active investment of its own resources. Correspondingly, DIXY has need of credit funds to finance current company operations," company Press Secretary Lavrenty Gubin told Interfax.
The interest rate is 8.8% per annum, and the loan falls due on March 9, 2013.
As reported previously, DIXY shareholders approved on March 10 the acquisition of rival retail chain Victoria and the issue of additional shares in the context of this deal. DIXY will issue 38.75 million ordinary shares with par value of 0.01 of a ruble, thereby increasing charter capital from 860,000 rubles to 1,247,500 rubles.
The shares can be paid for either with cash or with ordinary shares in OJSC Company Group Victoria. The price tag on the 100% Victoria acquisition will come to 25.6 billion rubles, factoring in the retailer's debts.
DIXY Group's main shareholder is the company group Mercury, controlled by Igor Kesayev, which holds 63.37% of shares.
At the start of this year, DIXY had 646 stores, most of them (623) eponymous discounters. The company is also developing a chain of Minimart supermarkets (8 at the start of the year) and Megamart hypermarkets (15). The company made 64.7 billion rubles in sales revenues in 2010.