Uralkali, Moscow, has purchased 12.7 percent of its own shares from shareholder Rinsoco Trading, reducing the latter’s stake in the potash company from 18.5 percent to 5.8 percent, according to a Feb. 10 Interfax report citing Uralkali.
The purchase was made by Uralkali Invest LLC, according to the report.
Uralkali’s principal shareholder since late last year is Dmitry Mazepin’s Uralchem, with 81.5 percent of the equity. Uralchem upped its stake in the potash company from 46.4 percent with the purchase of a 35.1 percent stake from Rinsoco in early December, in a deal that was financed by Russia’s Sberbank (GM Dec. 4, 2020).
Rinsoco Trading is owned by Belarusian businessman Dmitry Lobyak, who is a close business associate of Mazepin.
Uralchem in November confirmed that it planned a management reshuffle for Uralkali and Uralchem, saying the management would be merged in 2021 and transferred to the head of a joint management company (GM Nov. 20, 2020). Uralkali in fact named a new CEO in late November (GM Nov. 27, 2020). However, Mazepin has refuted speculation by some Russian media that the two companies planned to merge in 2021.
The report of this latest share transaction had not been confirmed by Uralkali.