Ferrexpo neutralizes legal risk over a 40% interest in Poltava Mine

Ferrexpo neutralizes legal risk over a 40% interest in Poltava Mine



4 грудня 2014 года
Конкорд Капитал

Ferrexpo (FXPO)


Iron ore miner and pellet producer Ferrexpo (FXPO LN, FXPOLN) gained a final legal victory in the Ukrainian courts over a disputed 40% stake in its key production subsidiary, Poltava Iron Ore (PGOK UK). The Supreme Court of Ukraine rejected claims by four companies, controlled by the Russian businessman Alexander Babakov, contending the legitimacy of the stake’s sale to Kostyantyn Zhevago in 2002.



Babakov sold the 40% stake for just USD 27 mln and he wanted to cancel the deal after iron ore prices rebounded sharply along with iron-related assets (Zhevago got USD 419 mln from the IPO of a 25% stake in Ferrexpo, the holding company for Poltava Iron Ore, in 2007). Babakov started his legal battle in 2005 and managed to obtain a court decision that invalidates the 2002 deal in 2011, under the Viktor Yanukovych presidency.



However, the return of the 40% stake was complicated by a series of resales of this stake from the first buyer (now the stake belongs to Ferrexpo) and a number of capital increases at Poltava Iron Ore, which have diluted the disputable stake to 10%. The victory marked Zhevago’s second favorable court ruling after Yanukovych’s ouster.



Roman Topolyuk: The Supreme Court’s decision neutralizes the legal risk for Ferrexpo shareholders, which has loomed ever since Ferrexpo’s listing on the LSE. This risk was included in the company’s IPO prospectus in 2007. Despite the positive meaning of the court’s decision for Ferrexpo’s legal position, the news will have a marginal positive effect on the stock, as we believe it is already priced in.

Источник: Конкорд Капитал

Аналитик: Роман Тополюк
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