August 29 (SeeNews) - Dutch-based group Middle Europe Investments will take part in upcoming initial public offerings (IPOs) in Bulgaria and Romania, aiming to capitalise on the strong potential for growth of the capital markets of the two EU newcomers, a company official said on Tuesday.
“We like the companies which are looking for growth financing [...] There are IPOs when companies sell current shares, while we prefer to invest in new shares that will give companies the opportunity to grow and to expand,” Middle Europe Investments director Peter Mars told SeeNews by phone from the Dutch city of Lochem.
Mars said Middle Europe Investments will target the IPOs of Romania's state-owned gas transmission company Transgaz and gas producer Romgaz. Romania plans to float a minority stake in Transgaz on the Bucharest bourse by the end of this year, while Romgaz will not be offered for sale before 2009.
Mars did not elaborate in which of the IPOs on the stock exchange in Sofia the group will take part. Road construction company Trace Group Hold, wide-format and offset printing company Billboard, Investbank and engineering, construction and energy group Enemona are just a few of the companies that plan to make IPOs on the Bulgarian Stock Exchange by the end of the year.
Middle Europe Investments (MEI) is targeting Bulgarian and Romanian companies through its investment fund Roemenie en Bulgarije Fonds. It has invested some 130 million euro ($177.3 milliion) in the two Black Sea neighbours that joined the EU in January. Of them, some 100 million euro were invested in Romania.
Some of the investments of MEI (www.mei.nl) include Romanian engineering company Prospectiuni and listed insulated wire and cable maker Iproeb and Bulgarian industrial conglomerate Chimimport and paint producer Orgachim.
How much MEI will invest in the two countries in the future depends on the issuing of new shares in the Netherlands, said Mars.
"We performed very well and see a lot of demand for our fund."
The stock exchanges in Romania and Bulgaria have enjoyed rising foreign investors’ interest since the beginning of the year supported by the EU accession of the two countries.
Roemenie en Bulgarije Fonds' shares have been listed on the Euronext Amsterdam stock exchange since 23 March 2006.
($ = 0.7331 euro)