News Parkiet

Privatization

Treasury to receive more than 2 billion zloty in dividends

Polish government is set to receive as much as 2 billion zloty ($588 million) in dividends this year, a survey by PARKIET shows. Treasury department, the formal owner of stakes in various publicly traded companies, pushed for higher dividends to offset delays in asset sales this year. Unlisted public corporations will add almost one billion zloty in quarterly or monthly distributions.

Pharmaceuticals

Teva to buy Ivax for $7.4 billion

Israeli company Teva Pharmaceutical Industries said Monday it would pay as much as $7.4 billion to acquire generic drug maker Ivax Corp., offering to pay $26 a share in cash or shares. The deal sent shares of Ivax, which are traded on the WSE since last year?s stock purchase of Polish drug-maker Polfa Kutno up 10 percent to an all-time high of 89.8 zloty.

New media

Telekomunikacja regains control

over Wirtualna Polska

Poland?s national phone company, France Telecom-owned Telekomunikacja Polska has finally reached a settlement that would give the operator control over Wirtualna Polska, the country?s no. 2 Internet directory. Telekomunikacja said it has agreed to pay as much as 165 million zloty for the 19.54 percent stake now held by Wirtualna?s minority shareholders, two companies controlled by its co-founders, Maciej Grabski and Jacek Kawalec. It will pay an additional 55 million zloty once it regains full control over Wirtualna.

Petrochemicals

Orlen overpaid for rebranding project,

report says

Internal investigation at PKN Orlen oil refinery shows the company may have spent far too much money on a 25 million euro project to replace the signs at the nearly 500 gas stations in Germany. An internal report says Płock-based refiner has hired a broker, a tiny company called Connecting Visions despite the fact that the contractor had no obvious experience or assets to do the job.

Real estate

GTC to build new shopping mall in Croatia

Commercial property developer Globe Trade Centre has begun construction of a new shopping center in Croatia, sources at the company told PARKIET recently. The new project, to be called Avenue Mall will be completed in the spring of 2007. GTC, which already operates two shopping malls in Poland, Warsaw?s Galeria Mokotów and Galeria Kazimierz in Kraków, says construction of Avenue Mall will cost an estimated 60 million euros. Bank loans account for about 80 percent of the project financing, GTC said. Warsaw-based firm said it has already secured two major tenants, Kozum supermarket and Blitz Cinestar multiplex theater. Between them, the two have agreed to rent out 27 percent of Avenue Mall.

Equity markets

IDMSA.pl, EMC offerings oversubscribed

The IPO market showed new signs of life last week as two new companies planning to raise funds on the Warsaw bourse said they sold all shares offered to investors. IDMSA.pl, the first brokerage house to list on the Warsaw Stock Exchange said its IPO was 71 percent oversubscribed. Kraków-based IDMSA sold 1.5 million shares at 12 zloty each, for a total of 18 million zloty before IPO expenses. Meanwhile private hospital operator EMC Instytut Medyczny said its IPO of 1.5 million new shares was 59 percent oversubscribed by retail investors. EMC sold shares at 7.6 zloty each, netting a total of 11.4 million zloty. Shares of EMC will start trading early next month. IDMSA.pl is expected to begin trading on Wednesday.

Mining

Kopex goes back to Africa

Mining equipment supplier and arms dealer Kopex SA said it has made a bid for a multi-million dollar project to drill several new mine shafts at a mine in Zambia, chief executive Rafał Rost told PARKIET yesterday. State-controlled Kopex used to build mines in Africa as early as 1970?s.

In another development Kopex said it would sell 16.2 million eAlso yesterday, Polish investor Roman Karkosik said he would make a bid for the 64.6 percent stake in Kopex on sale by government owned sugar refining group. Mr. Karkosik, whose net worth is estimated at two to three billion zloty, said he sees potential synergies between Kopex and metal companies he already owns.