Group MENATEP co-owner Leonid Nevzlin returned to oil business by acquiring a small share in Israel’s largest oil refinery.
Photo: Dmitry Dukhanin
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MENATEP Becomes Minority Shareholder of Israel’s Oil Refining
// Chief shareholder of YUKOS will be co-owner of an oil refinery in Haifa
Israel’s oil refining sector has been completely privatized yesterday. The controlling stock of Oil Refineries Ltd state holding was eventually acquired by a consortium whose minority shareholder is Group MENATEP, chief shareholder of YUKOS. Thus, MENATEP became the co-owner of an oil refinery in Haifa, the major factory in Israel, and its partner Israel Petrochemicals strengthened the control over its main asset -- Carmel Olefins petrochemical company, and secured raw material supplies for it.
Israel’s petrochemical state-run holding Oil Refineries Ltd. (ORL) became completely private on February 20. ORL initially included two oil refineries: in Ashdod (capacity of 5 million metric tons per year), and in Haifa (8.5 million tons annually). The privatization went in two stages. First, Ashdod refinery was separated from ORL and sold at an auction in July 2006 to Israeli petrochemical holding Paz for $776 million. Second, 44 percent of ORL’s shares were sold to institutional investors last week, and 56 percent was offered to a large circle of buyers on Tuesday.
Thus, minor investors acquired 10 percent, and Israel Corp. together with Israel Petrochemical Enterprises bought 46 percent for nearly $700 million. Israel Petrochemicals is a part of Modgal holding, 26 percent of which was purchased by Group MENATEP in March 2005. MENATEP’s share in the holding is equal to 14.8 percent in Israel Petrochemicals.
Israel Petrochemicals will not only obtain control over major Israel’s oil refineries, and over raw material supplies for Carmel Olefins. If 50 percent of Carmel Olefins initially belonged to ORL, then, by acquiring the latter, Israel Petrochemicals will have complete control over the enterprise.
www.kommersant.com
All the Article in Russian as of Feb. 22, 2007
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