MOSCOW - Russian gold miner Uzhuralzoloto (UGC) said on Monday it has set the price range for its Moscow Exchange initial public offering (IPO) at 0.55 to 0.60 roubles per share, equating to pre-money share capital of 110-billion to 120-billion roubles ($1.19-billion to $1.30-billion).
UGC, Russia's fourth-largest gold miner, said last week it would offer up to 5% of its capital in new shares in its IPO, shrugging off British sanctions on its owner, Konstantin Strukov, to push ahead with the offering.
Russian share listings have been few and far between since Russia sent its troops into Ukraine in February 2022, and are generally characterised by small volumes and dependent on Russian investors after an exodus of Western capital.
Three financial market sources told Reuters last month that UGC was planning the IPO and gave it a preliminary valuation of 120-billion roubles.
UGC's offer consists solely of an additional share issue. Funds will be used for debt reduction and general corporate purposes, UGC said.
"We have already received a number of indicative bids from large institutional investors in a volume exceeding half of the planned deal," CFO Artem Kletskin said in a statement.
"We expect that our investment case will also attract the attention of retail investors, who are currently the main driving force of the Russian stock market."
Trading is expected to start on November 22, UGC said.
Britain imposed sanctions on 29 individuals and entities in Russia's gold and oil sectors last week, including Strukov and two of Russia's largest gold producers, Nord Gold and Highland Gold Mining, but not UGC itself.
UGC said individual sanctions would not affect its work, operations or exports. The company said its operations were not exposed to geopolitical fallout as it does not rely on Western-made equipment.