Russian Oil Firm Rosneft May Buy Own Shares In Stake Sale

Russian Oil Firm Rosneft May Buy Own Shares In Stake Sale
Russia's top oil producer Rosneft can buy some of its shares slated for privatization and re-sell them later, an Economy Ministry official told Reuters on Friday.

Reuters

MOSCOW, Oct 21 (Reuters) - Russia's top oil producer Rosneft can buy some of its shares slated for privatisation and re-sell them later, an Economy Ministry official told Reuters on Friday.

Russia hopes to raise around 700 billion roubles ($11.2 billion) from the sale this year of a 19.5 percent stake in Rosneft by state holding company Rosneftegas, which holds 69.5 percent of its shares.

"In accordance with the law, a part of Rosneft stake may be bought by the parent company (Rosneft) or its subsidiary," Oksana Tarasenko, head of the Economy Ministry's Corporate Governance Department, said in emailed comments.

"Even if there is a buyback (by Rosneft), we will expect a further sell-off of these shares to an investor at the most suitable point of time," she added.

President Vladimir Putin also said last week the state-owned company could buy its shares from the government and resell them to private investors in future.

Tarasenko said the search for investors for the Rosneft stake continued.

She said Rosneft's value had increased after it bought a 50.1 percent stake in rival Bashneft, adding "the budget should receive quite a substantial amount (of funds) from the (Rosneft privatisation) deal".

Moscow envisages the funds it raises from the stake sale will help plug holes in a state budget hit by low world oil prices and Russia's economic stagnation.

(Reporting by Denis Pinchuk; writing by Katya Golubkova/Denis Pinchuk; editing by Maria Kiselyova and Susan Thomas)



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