October 9, 2006

Russia's Derzhava plans IPO in 2008

Russian agricultural holding, Derzhava planned to hold an initial public offering on Russian exchanges in the year 2008, the company said in a memorandum to investors.

Derzhava is controlled on a parity basis by chairman of the board Alexander Konyashin and its president Andrei Sergeyev.

Some of the functions that the company carries out include processing grains and producing milled cereal grains, formula feed and flour, as well as grain production and trade. Besides, the group also undertakes poultry and dairy farming, industrial production and leasing of farm machinery.

About 9 percent of the country's cereal market and 25 percent of the millet market is controlled by Derzhava. This year, the company plans to process about 650,000 tonnes of grain, about 400,000 tonnes more than the previous year as a result of increased productivity.

In terms of revenue, the company recorded about RUB 2.24 billion (US$83 million) in the first half of the current year compared to RUB 3.79 billion in the previous year. Net profit totalled RUB 166.2 million in the current half compared to RUB 376 million last year.