Marco negotiates for another 15% in Alro

US trade company Marco International, which plans to take over Romanian aluminium producer Alro, announced it was negotiating the purchase of another significant stake in the company and that it planned to launch a public purchasing offer for the rest of Alro shares traded on the stock exchange.

Alan Kestenbaum, Marco International chairman and main shareholder, said he was in talks to buy another 15% in Alro from four investment funds.

“We want to increase our stake in Alro. We are in talks to buy shares directly, but we are also considering the launch of a public purchase offer through the stock exchange,” Alan Kestenbaum said.

Marco International holds 25% in Alro, both directly and indirectly, through the Romanian-based company Conef. Marco has purchased a 14% stake in Alro and 6.64% in Alprom Slatina over the past weeks.

Alro, one of the best state-owned companies, is the object of a controversial issue. The US company is likely to become main shareholder in the aluminium producer if the share capital increase through a 60 million-dollar cash inflow is approved. As the state cannot participate in the capital increase, Marco might turn into the main shareholder.

Those who stand to lose are international producers in this field, among which French Group Pechiney, Europe’s leading producer. They are performing a sustained lobby so that the share capital increase should not occur.

According to Alan Kestenbaum, the decision to launch a public purchasing offer will be made regardless of the decision regarding the share capital increase.

The investment funds owning 15% in Alro – Anvil Ventures, Rafferty, Globoid Finance and Radiance – became shareholders at the beginning of this year, when Broadhurst Investment sold its 8% stake in Alro.

As most transactions were performed through Alfa Securities brokerage agency and Alfa Group used to be an Alro shareholder, many analysts considered that the strong Russian group was behind the four investment funds.

At that moment, Alfa Securities officials replied that they had acquired Alro shares on behalf of another client, who was interested in a long-term investment. “We have not found out who controls the funds, because we are negotiating through Alfa Securities,” Peter Braun, Conef vice-president, said.

Alan Kestenbaum stated again that Marco International does not represent Russian interests and has no business ties with Crown Resources, the commerce branch of Alfa or with the disputed US businessman Mark Rich.

“Marco International was founded at a moment when Russian investments abroad were out of the question. My family is this company’s main shareholder,” Kestenbaum said.