MOSCOW (MRC) -- Rosneft JV Projects S.A. (Luxembourg), an indirect subsidiary of Rosneft Oil Company, has announced the agreement to sell to institutional investors 114,120,000 ordinary shares in Saras S.p.A., representing 12% of the total share capital in Saras S.p.A., at a price of EUR 1.53 per share through an accelerated bookbuilding, as per Rosneft's press release.
Following the disposal of the remaining stake Rosneft fully withdraws from the shareholders of Saras S.p.A.
Rosneft net profit from its investment in Saras S.p.A. shares over 2013-2017 exceeded EUR 80 million (including dividends received). Total rate of return equals 9% p.a. in EUR.
The sale is a part of the ongoing portfolio optimization of Rosneft, related, among other things, to Rosneft’s inability to implement its previous agreements to increase its stake in the asset to the level of controlling interest as a result of sanctions’ restrictions. The proceeds from the disposal will be directed to the implementation of strategic projects with other Italian partners of Rosneft.
As MRC informed before, in June 2016, Rosneft and China Petrochemical Corporation (Sinopec Group) signed a Framework Agreement on joint pre-feasibility study of the project related to the construction and operation of a gas processing and petrochemical complex in East Siberia. The Agreement signed in furtherance of the Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation in petrochemical projects, provides to select a technology for natural gas processing from its components to polymers. The parties also decided to choose a consultant for the project management and identified competitive challenges and the time to fix them before entering the stage front-end engineering design (FEED). In the event of successful outcomes as stipulated by the Framework Agreement, it is supposed to create a joint venture between Rosneft and Sinopec in 2017.
Rosneft became Russia's largest publicly traded oil company in March 2013 after the USD55 billion takeover of TNK-BP, which was Russia’s third-largest oil producer at the time. Petrochemical assets of Rosneft include Angarsk Polymer Plant, Linik and Ufaorgsintez (part of Bashneft).
MRC