In a previous investigation Kommersant drew a link between Prana’s director general Vladimir Esakov and Gazprombank.
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New Owner of YUKOS HQ Linked to Gazprombank
Prana, the obscure company which paid $4 billion to buy headquarters of oil bankrupt YUKOS, finalized the deal on Friday. The company still declines to name its owners. In an effort to find ultimate beneficiaries of the mysterious firm, Kommersant has found yet another clue leading to Gazprombank.
YUKOS’s official receiver Eduard Rebgun and Prana’s director general Vladimir Esakov on Friday signed a deal on the lot that Prana won in an auction on May 11, Mr. Rebgun's spokesperson reported.
Prana, which paid $3.88 billion to acquire key assets of the bankrupt energy giant, does not speak to media, keeping names of its owners in secret.
Kommersant sources in YUKOS report that the Prana deal was finalized with the help of the Salans law firm which also consulted Enineftegaz which bought another YUKOS asset. Enineftegaz announced before the auction that Gazprom will receive a 2-year option to buy the asset.
Other unofficial sources provided Kommersant with a phone number that Prana was using to bid for YUKOS. The number is registered with United Capital Partners which has its headquarters in the Balchug Plaza business center. The building also hosts an office of Salans and Gazprombank which occupies several floors there. Shareholders of Bahamas-registered United Capital Partners (UCP) are unknown. UCP invests in stocks, real estate and consumer market.
The phone number in question also belongs to IDMS Finans, which “is actually the same thing”, according to the reception desk at Balchug Plaza. UCP chief executive Alexander Koval insists that his company has nothing to do with IDMS Finans, which is owned by Cyprus-registered Bestep Limited.
Bestep Limited is the only non-Russia co-owner of the RTS stock exchange. RTS President Oleg Safonov said in an interview with Kommersant that Bestep Limited is affiliated with Gazprombank.
Gazprombank in official comments denies any link to Bestep Limited, IDMS Finans, or UCP. In a previous investigation Kommersant drew a link between Prana’s director general and Gazprombank.
www.kommersant.com
All the Article in Russian as of June 13, 2007
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