Avangard to raise £163m
AVANGARD, Ukraine’s biggest producer of eggs, yesterday confirmed it plans to raise as much as £163m in a London share issue, valuing the company at $890m.
The company wants to use the proceeds of the offering to finance the expansion of its egg business through capital expenditures. This includes the completion of construction of two new egg production complexes at Avis and Chornobaivske in the Ukraine, which are each expected to have an annual capacity of 840m shell eggs when fully operational.
Nataliya Vasylyuk, chief executive officer of Avangard, said: “The IPO is intended to enable the company to enhance its position as one of the leading agro-industrial companies in Ukraine, and the leading Ukrainian egg production and processing company. We believe that the IPO provides investors with a compelling opportunity to benefit from the future growth of the business.”
Avangard has appointed Troika Dialog and NCB Stockbrokers as co-coordinators for the offering.
A spokesman for the company said the economy had shown signs of recovery in recent months and that now was an attractive time for a public offering. The company is expected to float on 7 May.
MICKAEL GIBAULT
TROIKA DIALOG
Mickael Gibault is the lead banker for Avangard’s $250m (£163m) IPO on the London Stock Exchange. He is a managing director in Troika’s Investment Banking division and head of Equity Capital Markets. A French national and Russian speaker, Gibault joined Troika in 2008 after ten years spent with JPMorgan in London.
Recent deals include acting as bookrunner on the $227m Eurasia Drilling Company market placement last week. Gibault also lead the IPO launch this week for KTK, a Russian coal producer looking to raise up to $398m.
Gibault said he is pleased with the deal momentum that Troika is experiencing and he thinks that equity issuances out of Russia and the broader CIS are poised to remain active this year across sectors, provided market conditions continue to recover.
Founded in 1991, Troika Dialog is Russia’s leading full service independent investment bank and asset management firm.