The stake of the Interros holding of businessman Vladimir Potanin in MMC Norilsk Nickel will grow following the buyback of the company’s shares, Interros said in a statement. It notes that the holding did not submit shares for redemption.
“As a result of the buy-back, the share of Interros in Norilsk Nickel will increase, which corresponds to the long-term strategy of Interros,” the message says. According to Interros CEO Sergei Batekhin, whose words are quoted in the press release, Norilsk Nickel’s shares are currently undervalued.
The largest shareholders of Norilsk Nickel are Interros, Rusal and Crispian with 34.6%, 27.8% and 4.7%, respectively. On their initiative, on April 27, 2021, the board of directors of Norilsk Nickel made a decision to carry out a buyback of shares.
Norilsk Nickel will be able to buy back up to 5,382,865 shares of the company, which constitute 3.4% of its share capital, for a total amount of about $ 2 billion. The buyback price will be 27.78 thousand rubles. for one share. Applications for participation in the program are accepted until June 18, 2021 (inclusive). Payment for shares is scheduled to be completed by July 3, 2021
On June 15, Rusal announced that it would sell part of its stake in Norilsk Nickel as part of the company’s share buyback procedure. The decrease in the company’s stake in Norilsk Nickel as a result of the buyback will be partially offset by the subsequent redemption of most of the acquired shares. Rusal expects that, as a result, the share in Norilsk Nickel will be higher than the blocking one (25% + 1 share), Maxim Poletaev, Deputy General Director of Rusal, explained to Vedomosti.
Rusal plans to use funds from participation in the buyback to finance its own investment program. In particular, the funds are planned to be invested in the completion of the Taishet aluminum plant. The funds can also be used to rebuild the Krasnoyarsk, Irkutsk, Novokuznetsk and Bratsk aluminum plants, which will require about $ 5 billion, Rusal said.
To participate in the buyback program, Rusal signed an addendum to the loan agreement with Sberbank to remove the collateral from the company’s shareholding in Norilsk Nickel, Poletaev said. As soon as the buyback procedure is completed, the shares will be pledged again, he specified.
.