UPDATE: Onexim starts collecting bids for 2.5% in RUSAL – source

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MOSCOW, Feb 13 (PRIME) -- Dimosenco Holdings, an affiliate of Russian billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov’s Onexim group, has started collecting bids for 2.5% in aluminum giant UC RUSAL at a price of U.S. $200 million, a banking source told PRIME on Monday.

The offer is in the form of accelerated bookbuilding, which indicates that Onexim may increase it, the source said.

VTB Capital acts as the global coordinator and bookrunner of the deal. The bid book will be closed on Monday and settlements will be done on Tuesday. The Onexim group will be unable to sell its remaining shares in RUSAL for 90 days after the deal.

Last week media reported that Prokhorov was preparing a sale of a 5% stake in RUSAL. SUAL Partners of Viktor Vekselberg and Leonard Blavatnik were interested in buying 12% in RUSAL from Onexim, but the deal is not yet completed which might be connected with strengthening of RUSAL’s shares in recent months.

According to RUSAL’s Web site, En+ owns 48.13% in the company, Onexim Group owns 17.02%, SUAL Partners has 15.80%, Amokenga Holdings – controlled by Swiss commodity trader Glencore – has 8.75%, the company’s management owns 0.25%, and 10.05% is free-float.

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