Romanian minister delegate for Energy, Constantin Nita, and Gabriel Dumitrascu, head of the privatization division within the Economy Ministry’s Energy Department, said Friday that Romgaz’s IPO could start Monday, October 21.
The IPO prospectus was approved Friday evening by the Financial Supervisory Authority, or ASF. The Capital Market law provides a two-day period between approving the prospectus and launching the public offering to give prospective investors time to analyze the data included in the prospectus.
The IPO will start Tuesday, October 22, is due for completion on October 31.
Romania’s government could raise as much as 1.85 billion lei (EUR415.6 million) in Romgaz’s IPO, according to a pricing range it set Friday. The government has set a price range of 24 to 32 lei (EUR5.39 to EUR7.18) a share for Romgaz’s initial public offering of shares and global depository receipts (GDRs) to be traded in Bucharest and London, respectively.
The IPO will include three separate packages for corporate and retail investors, with small retail investors benefiting from a discount of 3% to 5% of the final price, depending on the subscription date.
Romgaz is Romania’s largest natural gas producer and supplier, covering around 50% of the domestic output. The company produced 5.7 billion cubic meters of gas in 2012.
Romgaz is majority owned by the Energy Department. The company reported a net profit of RON1.24 billion in 2012, up 20% on the year, on total sales of RON3.84 billion.