The Turkish government sold this week a 16.5 percent stake in gasoline retailer Petrol Ofisi (PO). The transaction injected $183 million into the Turkish treasury, approximately half of the amount initially targeted by the Privatization Administration.
Some 79 percent of the 8.25 billion shares traded in the transaction were sold to local investors, mostly at a 12 percent discount on the offer price. The state retained a 25.5 percent interest in the local oil distributor.
The public offering fetched 30,000 Turkish liras per share. Trading in Petrol Ofisi shares last closed at 34,000 liras. It is set to resume Thursday, March 21.
The government sold 51 percent of Petrol Ofisi to Turkiye Is Bankasi and Dogan Sirketler Grubu Holding AS in 2000 for $1.3 billion. Established in 1941, Petrol Ofisi is engaged in the purchase, storage, marketing and distribution of petroleum products. It also produces lubricating oil and greases. — (menareport.com)
© 2002 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
