The Treasury plans to sell up to 20% in the country's natural gas monopolist PGNiG by the end of 2005, after the company debuts on the Warsaw Stock Exchange (WSE) with PLN 1.5bn worth of new issue shares in the middle of the year, Treasury Minister Jacek Socha said on Tuesday. After the second phase of PGNiG's privatisation, the Treasury intends to retain a 51% stake. The company's capital is due to be raised by 15%, while another 15% will go to its employees. Hence, the Treasury could sell up to 20% on the WSE, Socha added. Under the Treasury's 2005 privatisation guidelines, the first stage of PGNiG's privatisation is planned for H1/2005, in the form of a new share issue to be carried out in an effort to recapitalise the gas monopolist. The proceeds from the issue will be used for debt restructuring. On Tuesday the cabinet passed an updated version of the natural gas sector's restructuring programme, which paves the way for PGNiG's privatisation. Also on Tuesday, PGNiG's CEO Marek Kossowski said the company will pick adviser to prepare, among others, PGNiG's initial public offering, late this week or early next
week. Kossowski had earlier said that there were at least several investors on the Polish market who are interested in increasing their own and PGNiG's value by linking with the gas monopolist. In early September, Janusz Wisniewski, acting president of PKN Orlen, the country's largest downstream oil firm, said PKN is interested in buying 20-35% in PGNiG.
On a related note, Kossowski also said PGNiG does not rule out a new eurobond issue. The company could offer bonds worth less than the EUR 800mn issue of 2001. In Kossowski's opinion, the new bonds would have to be sold on better conditions than the 2001 papers. In 2001, PGNiG issued EUR 800mn worth of eurobonds, with a coupon of 6.75%, maturing in 2006. In the autumn of 2002, the company bought back bonds of a total value of over EUR 100mn.