Today, settlements involving the sale of 47,000 shares in Agrobohemie and 27.977,162 shares in Synthesia took place, under the Share Purchase Agreements executed by and between Unipetrol and Deza. Unipetrol owned 50% of the shares in Agrobohemie and 38.79 % of the shares in Synthesia. The purchase price for the 47,000 shares in Agrobohemie totalled CZK 503 million. The purchase price for the 27.977,162 shares in Synthesia amounted in total to CZK 680 million. The purchase prices were determined by a reliable assessment expert jointly appointed by both companies, and they reflected the genuine fair value of the shares.Prague, 18 January 2008 – On 31 October 2007, Unipetrol and Deza entered into an agreement on an extrajudicial amicable settlement of their disputes relating to transfers to Deza of the shares in Agrobohemie and Synthesia owned by Unipetrol. The agreement was finally reached by the settlement. The execution of the agreement also helped eliminate the risk of the payment of high contractual penalties by Unipetrol to Deza, and of any potential legal defects of the sale of the shares in Agrobohemie and Synthesia.
Deza also agreed in the amicable settlement of disputes to withdraw actions filed against Unipetrol in relation to the sale of the above mentioned shares, and to refrain from seeking any contractual penalties or damages from Unipetrol.
Benefits of the amicable settlement for Unipetrol:
- the sale of the shares in Agrobohemie and Synthesia under the arms’ length conditions;
- elimination of potential legal defects of the sale of the shares in Agrobohemie and Synthesia;
- collection of financial funds from the sale of assets, which did not constitute the core objects of the Company;
- minimisation of costs of potential litigations;
- elimination of an exposure to additional financial burdens in case of an adverse ruling of the court of justice;
- future cooperation with the companies controlled by Deza in the sale and purchase of raw materials.
“ We are satisfied with the prices for which we have sold the shares in Agrobohemie and Synthesia because they reflect the genuine fair value of the shares“, said François Vleugels, Chairman of the Board and CEO of Unipetrol.
For more information about the history of the dispute between Unipetrol and Deza, please, see Press Release dated 31 October 2007, to be found on our web site: www.unipetrol.cz.
UNIPETROL, a.s. is a group of companies operating in the petrochemical industry in the Czech Republic. In 2005 UNIPETROL became part of the PKN ORLEN Group, the largest downstream oil company in Central Europe. UNIPETROL primarily focuses on crude oil processing, fuels distribution and petrochemical production. In all these areas UNIPETROL group is one of leading players in both the Czech and Central European markets. In 2006 UNIPETROL posted revenues amounting to CZK 95 billion and a net profit of CZK 1.6 billion. The UNIPETROL group employs approximately 4,000 people.
Contact:
Michaela Lagronová
Spokesperson
Unipetrol, a.s.
GSM: +420 602 304 708
E-mail: michaela.lagronova@unipetrol.cz