At a low start

Applicants for Yukos assets are studying the terms of participation in auctions

The YUKOS Creditors' Committee yesterday published the terms and procedure for bidding for the sale of assets. As expected, the bidding will be held in the form of open auctions, which will begin in March and will last until the end of the bankruptcy proceedings. “The first message about the start of trading will probably be published tomorrow (i.e. today, February 22 - Ed. ),” Nikolai Lashkevich, press secretary of the YUKOS bankruptcy trustee, said yesterday. He did not specify which lot would be the first, but he also did not refute the information that 9.44% of Rosneft shares with an initial price of 180 billion rubles would be put up for auction first. ($6.87 billion) and 20% shares of Gazprom Neft with an initial price of 105 billion rubles. ($4 billion). Mr. Lashkevich has not yet disclosed who the auction organizer will be; according to Prime-TASS, it will be the Russian Federal Property Fund.

The heads of Rosneft and Gazprom yesterday commented on the companies' plans to participate in auctions. Rosneft confirmed its readiness to buy its shares. And Gazprom Deputy Chairman Alexander Medvedev said that the concern will wait for the official announcement of the auction for the sale of Gazprom Neft and other YUKOS assets. “Until the auction has been announced and the bidding parameters and lot configurations have been approved, it is premature to talk about Gazprom’s participation. We need to familiarize ourselves with all the parameters of the auction, and besides, it is not yet clear which assets will be put up for sale,” he said at a teleconference.

YUKOS assets will be offered in separate lots, which will be formed by the bankruptcy trustee and approved by the committee of creditors, the company said in a statement published yesterday. The starting price of the lot will be determined by the committee of creditors. The auction step is set by the auction organizer for each lot separately in the amount of 0.5-1% of the starting price, but not more than 260 million rubles. The auction organizer can round the step to the nearest thousand rubles.

Both companies and individual entrepreneurs, as well as citizens, will be able to participate in the auctions. The committee of creditors decided not to introduce restrictions on any basis, including for foreigners. In addition, creditors intend to maintain transparency and allowed journalists to attend the auction. Applicants for assets must make a deposit - 20% of the initial price of the lot - in one ruble payment to YUKOS's account at Gazprombank. Then it will be necessary to obtain permission from the Federal Antimonopoly Service to purchase this property. In addition, companies are required to submit copies of state registration certificates (foreign companies - copies of constituent documents), documents confirming the authority of the company's management, an accounting report certified by the tax office, and written permission from the governing body for the purchase. Entrepreneurs are required to submit copies of their passport and business certificate. Ordinary citizens, in addition to a copy of their passport, must bring a notarized consent of their spouse to purchase this YUKOS asset. Applications and documents of applicants are considered by the auction organizer no later than the day before the start of the auction.

The winner of the auction is the participant who names the highest price during the auction. Within three days after winning the auction, the buyer must conclude an appropriate agreement with the bankruptcy trustee, which fixes the purchase price. He must transfer the money for the acquired asset to the YUKOS account within 14 days from the date of signing the agreement. If the buyer does not have time to do this, the contract is terminated, and the deposit remains with the seller as a penalty. After the funds are received into the YUKOS account, the bankruptcy trustee, within three days, signs an act of acceptance and transfer of property with the buyer and relieves himself of the seller’s responsibilities.

Anna GORSHKOVA