Foreign investors are actively interested in buying state-owned stakes in energy supply companies, while at the same time they note the need to introduce incentive tariff formation (RAB tariffs) for the reliable evaluation of privatized facilities, Brian Best, the manager of the investment banking department at Dragon Capital investment company, has stated.
“We see a certain interest in the energy sector and we have a mandate from international investors for participation in privatization of regional energy companies,” he said at the conference “Turning Tides: M&A in Ukraine” organized by AEQUO law firm in Kyiv.
At the same time, the expert noted the importance for investors of the availability of a transparent and understandable system for electricity tariffs formation.
“Without clarity in the structure of tariffs, it is difficult for investors to understand what the future cash flow will be and how to calculate the value of these assets. RAB tariffs are definitely a necessary condition for privatization,” the expert said.
Speaking about other state enterprises to be privatized, the expert noted the presence of a number of obstacles that limit investors’ interest in such assets, despite the fact that many of them seem very attractive.
“For example, Odesa Port-Side Chemical Plant and Sumykhimprom are burdened with significant artificial debts. And in order to conduct fair privatization, it is important to clear the balances of the enterprises from these liabilities,” he said.
The Economic Development and Trade Ministry of Ukraine plans to start privatization of large state-owned enterprises (SOE) from the sale of Centrenergo, First Deputy Minister Maksym Nefyodov has said. “Centrenergo could be the first test case, and other facilities would follow it,” he said at a roundtable entitled “Ukraine on the Way of Privatization” in Kyiv on Wednesday.
Acting Head of the State Property Fund of Ukraine (SPF) Vitaliy Trubarov said that after Centrenergo, it is likely that other power supply companies would be privatized. He also said that the start of the privatization of large companies is planned for this autumn.
CENTRENERGO, ECONOMY MINISTRY, ENERGY COMPANY, PRIVATIZATION
The Ukrainian government has approved a list of large enterprises for privatization in 2018. It includes 26 enterprises: five regional electricity supply companies, Centrenergo, Odesa Port-Side Plant, Turboatom, Zaporizhia Titanium and Magnesium Combine, United Mining-Chemical Companyand Sumykhimprom.
“We are selling them to make investments and enterprises work efficiently. We need to attract qualified advisers to privatize large enterprises… We will get it over with the shadow privatization in Ukraine by this decision,” Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman said, commenting on this decision at a meeting on Thursday, predicting a strong confrontation of opponents to this approach.
Head of the State Property Fund Vitaliy Trubarov said that 18 enterprises are already in the Fund’s management, including Ternopiloblenergo (50.999%), Zaporizhiaoblenergo (60.2475%), Kharkivoblenergo (65.001%), Mykolaivoblenergo (70%) and Khmelnytskoblenergo (70.0089%), Kherson (99.8328%), Dniprovska (99.9277%), Kryvy Rih (99.9864%) and Severodonetsk combined heat and power plants (CHPPs), Azovmash (50%), Turboatom (75.2241%), Zaporizhia Titanium and Magnesium Combine (51%), Oriana (99.9988%), Aluminum foil plant (state-owned enterprise), President Hotel (100%), Centrenergo (78.289%), Odesa Port-Side Plant (99.5667%) and Sumykhimprom (99.9952%).
Trubarov said that three enterprises are managed by the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade: United Mining-Chemical Company (100%), Electrotyazhmash and Dniprovsky Electric Locomotive Plant (state-owned enterprises), two more facilities are in the management of the Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food – Agrarian Fund and the State Food-Grain Corporation of Ukraine (100%) and one each are subordinated to the Ministry of Energy and Coal Industry, the Cabinet of Ministers and the Ministry of Health: the Coal Company Krasnolymanska (state-owned enterprise), Ukragroleasing (100%) and Indar (70.7016%) respectively.
The Ukrainian government at a meeting on May 10 is to approve a list of largest facilities for privatization in 2018, which will launch the process of preparation of them for privatization which could start at the end of this autumn, acting Head of the State Property Fund of Ukraine (SPF) Vitaliy Trubarov has said. “If we have the timing of all the procedures in a single thread, then we get actual privatization – this is the end of the autumn, relatively speaking, from the middle of October through December,” he said on Channel 5 TV.
Trubarov said that the SPF as soon as possible after the meeting of the Cabinet of Ministers will launch all the required procedures, including selection of advisers.
“There is a danger that the procedures that we will launch this year will not be finished before the end of the year. We will transfer some of the facilities to the beginning of 2019,” he said.
Answering the question about the term of the privatization of the Odesa Port-Side Plant, which tenders in 2017 ended twice as a failure, Trubarov called this facility “the most problematic” and urged not to hurry with a new attempt of selling it because of the unsolved debt problem. “The most important problem is its debts, which are fixed by the court decision. Unfortunately, at the moment we are just approaching the decision together with our international advisors to the issue related to the possibility of debt restructuring,” he said. “So far we have not found a solution to what to do with the debt. We do not need to put it up for sale now. We still have time, in this situation it is better not to rush,” the head of the SPF said.
The government committee has approved a list of large-scale privatization enterprises for 2018, which included 26 companies, including five regional energy companies, Centrenergo, Odesa Port-Side Chemical Plant, Turboatom, Zaporizhia Titanium and Magnesium Combine, United Mining-Chemical Company, Sumykhimprom, Acting Head of the State Property Fund (SPF) Vitaliy Trubarov has said.
He said 18 facilities are already managed by the fund, including Ternopiloblenergo, Zaporizhiaoblenergo, Kharkivoblenergo, Mykolaivoblenergo and Khmelnytskoblenergo, Kherson thermal power plant (TPP), Dniprovska TPP, Kryvy Rih TPP and Severodonetsk TPP, Azovmash, Turboatom, Zaporizhia Titanium and Magnesium Combine, Oriana, Aluminum Foil Plant, President-Hotel, Centrenergo, Odesa Port-Side Chemical Plant, and Sumykhimprom.
Trubarov said three enterprises are managed by the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade, including United Mining-Chemical Company, Electrotyazhmash and Dniprovsky Electric Locomotive Plant. Two more objects are managed by the Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food: the Agrarian Fund and the State Food and Grain Corporation of Ukraine. Each of the Ministry of Energy and Coal Industry, the Cabinet of Ministers and the Ministry of Health manage one enterprise: Krasnolymanska coal company, Ukragroleasing, and Indar respectively.
