June 26 (SeeNews) - Romanian businessman Dinu Patriciu said on Friday he has exited the country’s second-largest private oil company Rompetrol Group by selling its 25% stake to the group's majority owner, Kazakhstan's KazMunayGas.
Following this transaction KazMunayGas becomes the sole shareholder of Dutch-based Rompetrol Group, whose main asset is Romanian oil refinery Rompetrol Rafinare.
You can subscribe to our M&A newsletter here
“The decision to sell my participation in Rompetrol Group is part of a larger business strategy,” Patriciu said in a statement, without disclosing the value of the deal. He added that he plans to focus on the European real estate market, mass-media and projects in energy sector.
In August 2007 KazMunayGas acquired a 75% stake in Rompetrol Group from Swiss-based Rompetrol Holding SA, owned by Patriciu. Following the transaction, Rompetrol Holding SA remained with a 25% stake in the group.
The purchase of the remaining 25% stake in Rompetrol Group was a private transaction, based on the terms of the initial agreement signed in August 2007, KazMunayGas said in a separate statement on Friday.
Earlier this month Romanian media reported that Patriciu exited the group but he denied the reports saying that it was a media rumour that could not be confirmed.
Blue chip Rompetrol Rafinare's shares were suspended from trading at 1114 GMT on Friday on the Bucharest bourse and will resume trading on Monday. Its stock last traded 0.22% down at 0.045 lei ($0.015/0.0107 euro) by 1058 GMT.
(1 euro=4.222 Romanian lei)
Rompetrol Rafinare SA is among the biggest companies in SEE. You can download our SEE Top 100 ranking
here or subscribe to our free Top 100 newsletter
here