Zaporizhstal Announces IPO Plans.

Oleksandr Kuznetsov, a representative of Midland Capital Management which is affiliated with Zaporizhstal‘s (ZPST: Suspended) owner, Midland Resources, disclosed plans take ZPST public on a foreign stock exchange in 2007. In his words, the readiness of the steel mill for the IPO will depend on the success of the share issue approved by ZPST’s AGM on June 7, 2006. Concorde Capital: Zaporizhstal is attempting to triple its charter fund with an additional share issue despite protests from minority shareholders whose rights would be violated if such an issue takes place. We think that ZPST’s controlling owners will have to seek a compromise with the minority investors if they want the mill’s IPO to be successful. The resolution of the conflict could be a buy-back of minority stakes at the price that prevailed in the market before the news on the planned share issue was first publicized.