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Gazprom Gives Up Heavy Vehicles
Gazprom announced yesterday it offers for sale the third of Chelyabinsk Region’s Iveco-UralAZ. The stake may look attractive to BazEl, owner of another third in the company via UralAZ. The last owner Italian Iveco appears definitely at a loss. Gazprom has never offered the stake to other founders before putting it up for the public buyout.
Iveco-UralAZ produces truck cabs, heavy vehicles designed for operation in severe climate and road conditions. Annual output stands at around 100 vehicles, each worth ˆ103,500 on average. The 2005-yr target sets forth 1.5 fold growth in the unit volume. The experts say the company covers 12 percent of Russian market.
Iveco-UralAZ has 62.2 million rubles in stock capital, equally split between Gazprom, UralAZ (division of BazEl’s Ruspromavto) and Italian Iveco Spa (FIAT).
Gazprom’s intention to dispose of its share in Iveco-UralAZ was first voiced four years ago. Gas monopoly might have overestimated its demand for heavy vehicles, having pledged in 1994 to annually purchase from 400 to 500 trucks of Iveco-UralAZ-make. It has hardly acquired more than 85 vehicles during a decade.
In 2001, Gazprom was negotiating to sell the asset to Ruspromavto, so that the latter could beef up its stake to 66 percent, but the deal has been never made as the parties failed to agree on the price.
Yesterday, Gazprom’s web-site announced the company is looking for a buyer of its 33.33 percent stake in Iveco-UralAZ, sold in line with the company’s program to dispose of non-core assets. The balance value is estimated at 142.3 million rubles, the nominal value is 22.7 million rubles, the starting price for the lot equals 92 million rubles. No trading date has been determined. “We will be accepting bids from potential buyers within three weeks, then we will decide on the further destiny of this asset,” Gazprom press service told Kommersant.
Iveco-UralAZ doesn’t hail Gazprom’s withdrawal. “We are not ready for the changes in founders,” acknowledged Viktor Khoruzhenko, commercial manager at Iveco-UralAZ. “We are not an oil company, and those willing to buy our stocks will be few and far between,”
The public offer turned out a clear surprise to other owners of the joint venture. Having expressly ignored Russian laws, Gazprom has put up the stake without the previous offer made to the co-owners, Iveco officials said, declining to elaborate till the formal notification is served.
Ruspromavto is still tipped as the primary prospect. Gazprom has discussed the issue with that company, Iveco spokesman told Kommersant. Ruspromavto also confirmed it is eyeing the asset. “Out experts are studying how attractive the asset is,” Ruspromavto briefer Vladimir Torin pointed out. “The joint venture has been tied up with the works in a single production chain [Iveco-UralAZ makes truck cabs for Ural],” UralAZ briefer Dmitry Fedechkin noted.
In Iveco, they don’t cross out possible bidding. Once the stake is bought out by Ruspromavto, Iveco will turn into a minor from today’s equal partner. However, FIAT will hardly acquire the stake of no interest to Gazprom.
www.kommersant.com
All the Article in Russian as of Mar. 22, 2005
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