Interpipe To Strengthen Its Position At Nikopol Ferroalloy.

At yesterday’s AGM, the company’s shareholders (NFER) appointed Volodymyr Kutsyn as CEO and elected Oleksandr Neustroyev as Chairnman of The Board. Both executives are believed to be loyal to Interpipe. In addition, the AGM decided to pay out all NFER’s net income for 2005 (USD 1.5 mln) as dividends. Concorde Capital: A number of previous attempts to hold NFER’s AGM failed due to a lack of state representatives in attendance. The State Property Fund (SPFU) was entitled control over a 50%+1 share stake in the company after The Supreme Court effectively ruled that the previous privatization of the stake was unlawful. However, the SPFU has not yet managed to complete the return of NFER to the state. Yesterday’s AGM took place in a very odd way, with Volodymyr Kutsyn using powers of attorney for the state’s stake to make it happen. We think that the AGM was an attempt by Interpipe to regain its control over the company during the current period of political uncertainty in the country and expect multiple law suits sponsored by Privat group who also viding for the asset. We do not rule out the possibility that the AGM’s results will later be announced unlawful by the state. Uncertainty over the company’s fate remains. WATCH.