PRESS: Inter RAO may buy back free float, leave Moscow Exchange

MOSCOW, Mar 16 (PRIME) -- Russian power holding Inter RAO is considering buying back its entire free float of 32.24% in order to delist from the Moscow Exchange, Kommersant business daily reported on Wednesday citing sources in the industry including the ones close to the company.

One of the sources told the daily that the company wants to do the buyback quickly, and the main goal is to improve its controllability and reduce the amount of information it has to disclose during the times of Western sanctions.

The control over Inter RAO is split among its subsidiary Inter RAO Capital that owns 29.56% in the company, state oil and gas holding Rosneftegaz with a 27.63% stake, and Federal Grid Company of Unified Energy System (FGC UES), part of state power grid holding Rosseti, with an 8.57% stake.

It is unclear whether Rosneftegaz or FGC UES would sell their stakes, but an increase of Inter RAO Capital’s ownership above 30% would oblige the company to make an offer to minorities, Kommersant reported.

The delisting would allow Inter RAO to reduce the amount of information it has to disclose. The company is yet to publish its financial report for 2021 calculated under International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), even though it planned to publish it on March 1. Foreign minorities, mainly foreign funds that are unable to sell shares of Russian companies right now would retain their ownership if the company delists shares, the daily reported.

As of February 25, Inter RAO’s capitalization amounted to 286 billion rubles, of which the treasury stake cost 86 billion rubles. The company’s shares lost 41% since January 1, or 21% since the beginning of the military operation in Ukraine, so the cost of the free float over the past three months could be evaluated at 170 billion rubles.

Inter RAO declined to comment, while a Rosseti representative said that the issue of a possible sale of shares is for the government to decide.

(111.4823 rubles – U.S. $1)

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