MOSCOW. June 17 (Interfax) - Management at United Company RUSAL (UC RUSAL) backs the spin-off of power-generating assets by MMC Norilsk Nickel (RTS: GMKN), in which the Russian aluminium giant owns a blocking stake.
"Management backs the spin-off as it would create added value," Artem Volynets, RUSAL's strategy director, told Interfax.
Norilsk Nickel at the end of last year asked its shareholders to vote on spinning the mining and smelting giant's non-core power sector assets off along similar lines to the gold spin-off which led to the creation of Polyus Gold (RTS: PLZL), Russia's and one of the world's biggest gold producers.
The new power company, Energo-Polyus, would become one of the biggest independent investors in the Russian power industry, with 6% of Russia's installed generating capacity.
But Mikhail Prokhorov, president of the Onexim Fund and at the time one of Norilsk's co-owners (alongside Interros chief Vladimir Potanin), blocked the spin-off on the grounds that RUSAL, to which Prokhorov had already agreed to sell his blocking stake, ought to have a say in the matter. RUSAL bought the stake from Prokhorov in April this year.
Norilsk's board of directors reached a decision in principle to sell the non-core power sector assets off in February, but Norilsk has so far sold just 1.7% of the OGK-5 (RTS: OGKE) wholesale generating company for $106 million to Italy's Enel.
Vladimir Potanin said at the end of May that he had suggested that Norilsk Nickel readdress the power spin-off.
Source: Interfax
豫公网安备41010502003434号