13 October 2016, Thursday, 16:48 180

Firtash Says Government Refused To Sell OPP In 2012 For USD 1.25 Billion

Редактор: Daria Zubkova

Chairman of the Board of Directors of Group DF Dmytro Firtash says the Ukrainian government refused to sell him the Odesa Portside Plant in 2012 for USD 1.25 billion.

Dmytro Firtash announced this in an interview with the RBK-Ukraine outlet, Ukrainian News Agency reports.

"In 2012 I offered the government USD 1.25 billion. They did not sell… I was ready to pay for the Odesa Portside Plant, and Yanukovych [Viktor Yanukovych then the president of Ukraine] knows this. And the money was at hand, but he said 'No.' He found one thousand reasons not to sell and he did not sell," said Fitash.

Dmytro Firtash added that he was not interested in buying the Odesa Portside Plant in 2009.

As Ukrainian News Agency earlier reported, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine intends to endorse a starting price of the 99.567% stake in the Odessa Portside Plant, which is the largest producer of ammonia and urea in Ukraine, advised by the State Property Fund.

The State Property Fund intends to advise the Cabinet of Ministers endorse a starting price of the shareholding in the Odesa Portside Plant at the level of USD 150 million against the starting price of USD 520 million at the failed auction of July 26, 2016.

On 18 July 2016 the State Property Fund announced that the competition for the Odessa Portside Plant did not take place due to lack of bids.

According to the State Property Fund's leadership, the Odessa Portside Plant's debt for natural gas to Ostchem Holding Limited (part of Dmytro Firtash's Group DF) and Nortima's lawsuits prompted the most questions and doubts among potential investors.

The State Property Fund offered 99.567% of the shares in the Odessa Portside Plant (795,083,903 shares) for sale.

The starting price of the 99.567% stake in the Odessa Portside Plant was UAH 13.175 billion.

The State Property Fund said it intended to call a repeat tender to sell the Odesa Portside Plant late in August or early in September 2016.

The State Property Fund considers it necessary to take into account wishes of potential investors during the formation of terms of the repeat tender and to cut the starting price of the State shareholding in the plant.