SPF Announces Plans For Luhanskteplovoz, Odesa Portside Privatizations

The State Property Fund (SPF) announced last week that it planning to push through with plans privatize stakes in locomotive-maker Luhanskteplovoz (LTPL: HOLD) and the Odesa Portside Plant before the end of the year. According to SPF Head Valentina Seymonuk, the Cabinet has confirmed plans to place a 10% stake in Odesa Portside on a local exchange. Additionally Seymonuik said the court cases surrounding LTPL would not stop the SPF from holding a tender for a 76% stake in the company later this spring. Last week the SPF said that it was going to announce the sale of 1% of Ukrtelecom (UTEL: HOLD) on March 28. The SPF plans to place five 1% stakes in UTEL on local exchanges this spring. Nick Piazza: We applaud the flurry of activity from the SPF, but as they say, talk is cheap. It will be quite an achievement if the SPF manages to place the 1% stake in UTEL later this month as the President is firmly against selling anything but a large block of the company. The legal battles surrounding LTPL also suggest this privatization will be later rather than sooner. However, this is one case where we would love to be proved wrong. With Odesa Portside it is still not clear how the state wants to privatize the company, as a whole or in parts, keeping its transshipment facilities in state hands.