Mobius about energy giants: If they do not generate added value, we're not interested in them

The capital increase at OMV Petrom and the project related to the setting up of the two national power companies are the main challenges facing Franklin Templeton at the beginning of its mandate as Fondul Proprietatea manager.
The first thing Templeton will do at FP is a detailed assessment of the Fund’s portfolio, which contains enough “hidden treasures,” in its opinion.
“What we must do first is to see where the hidden value of the portfolio lies, because there are many companies in the portfolio owning properties that are undervalued or not used at full capacity. This move entails close cooperation with the Government regarding the electricity field, because many companies of this sector comprised in FP’s portfolio are state-controlled,” Mark Mobius, executive chairman of Templeton Asset Management, told ZF in an interview.
FP owns significant stakes in five of the companies involved in the project related to the setting up of the two national power companies. In exchange for them, the fund should receive stakes in the two companies, to include, however, assets that have generated high losses in recent years.
Franklin is interested in this project only to the extent to which it will generate added value.