Sale of Aviastar's stake in Volga Dnepr goes to Volga Dnepr subsidiary

Published: 8/2/1999

It seems that the recently reported sale of Aviastar's 34% stake in Volga Dnepr (www.concise.org 7/7/99) has taken place with the stake being sold to a Volga Dnepr subsidiary, insurance company NIK. General Director of Aviastar Gennady Kortnev and Wacheslav Sirota, the director of the insurance company, signed the agreement. It was however, not revealed how much was paid for the stake in the Ulianovsk based cargo carrier. Aviastar did however; get an order from Volga-Dnepr to complete an An-124-100 currently awaiting funds. This aircraft will join the VD fleet of 8 An-124-100s.According to Aviastar the proceeds will be used to pay wage debts. According to the management, the $100 m sales airline decided to purchase the stake from Aviastar to retain control of the airline and prevent any potential unfriendly parties either increasing their stakes or establishing them, and interrupting management's plans to attract investments to modernise its An-124-100 fleet. The deal was supported by the Ulianovsk regional government where both of the companies are based. Volga-Dnepr main shareholders are insurance company NIK, Ulianovsk regional administration, Antonov Design Bureau, State property fund of Ukraine, ZMKB Progress Aviant and Aeroflot.

Article ID: 723