A deputy chairman of the National Property Fund, P. Kuta, commented on the Unipetrol privatization conditions in an interview for the LN daily:
* the bidders may decide how they will split the bids between Unipetrol's equity (the state has a 63% stake) and Unipetrol subsidiaries' debt
* the state is selling debt of a total of CZK 3.8bn (which is slightly less than we had estimated)
* the SEC and the antimonopoly office will assess the "fairness" of the binding bids in terms of their split between the equity and debt
* the government will assess the bids and compare them to the new privatization advisor's valuation (McKinsey, WestLB)
Separately, should the Kazakh KazMunaiGaz submit a joint bid with Shell, it "could be a problem for the government", Mr. Kuta said. Note that KazMunaiGaz was not allowed into the second round of the privatization tender due to a "strategic reason". However, other forms of cooperation between the two companies where Shell will assume all the rights and obligations towards the state would likely be accepted, he said. Neutral.
Jan Hájek, Patria Finance