Government has seized the assets of a Russian oligarch

The Ministry of Development and Technology introduced receivership to three companies owned by the Russian oligarch Vyacheslav Kantor that hold a fifth of shares in Grupa Azoty, Poland’s fertilizer tycoon. This move is intended to deprive the oligarch of the shares.

“Since Norica Holding S. à.R. L., Opansa Enterprises Limited, Rainbee Holdings Limited and Vyacheslav Kantor himself have been placed on the sanctions list of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Minister of Development and Technology Waldemar Buda decided to establish a temporary administrative receiver at these companies. This is to enable the acquisition of ownership of shares held by these companies in Grupa Azoty,” the ministry explained. Kantor owns a 19.82 percent stake in Azoty after a hostile takeover attempt in 2014.

“Considering the war the Russian Federation is waging against Ukraine, the a Russian being a shareholder in Grupa Azoty may also be an issue when searching for capital for Grupa Azoty’s development projects, as financial institutions may issue negative opinions,” the ministry claimed.

“The function of the compulsory administrative receiver will be performed by counsel Radoslaw Kwaśnicki,” the press release said. “First of all, a valuation will be drawn up to determine the market value of the packages that will be seized (according to the law, the acquisition is followed by compensation corresponding to the market value). The next steps are to identify the entity/entities that will take over the shares and to issue an administrative decision on the acquisition specifying, among others, the amount of compensation and indicating the acquiring entity/entities. These actions will be followed by the payment of compensation to a specific bank account subject to freezing and re-registration of the securities to the acquiring entity/entities,” the ministry stated.

Poles were the first in Europe to introduce a board of trustees at Novatek’s Polish assets (LPG Trading) and Gazprom’s shares in EuRoPol Gaz, the company that owns the Polish section of the Yamal gas pipeline,” the press release said. “Currently, the administrator is preparing the guidelines of the process of disposal of shares of EuRoPol gas belonging to Gazprom,” the ministry reminded.

Ministry of Development and Technology / Wojciech Jakóbik