Bulgargaz Holding, the Bulgarian state-controlled gas distributor, said it has acquired less than 1% of the 10% share stake floated on its domestic bourse by Romanian gas company Transgaz.
Bulgargaz division Bulgartransgaz and Transgaz are involved in the Nabucco project for the delivery of Caspian gas to Central and Eastern Europe and are potential participants in an initiative spearheaded by Hungary’s MOL for the creation of a regional gas holding consolidating the business of operators from six countries.
Bulgargaz Holding executive director Lyubomir Denchev said the company paid 1.1 mln levs to acquire 9,000 of the 1.17 mln shares offered by Transgaz.
The deal marks the first overseas acquisition for Bulgargaz which is aiming for a market cap of 4-6 bln euro, said Denchev.
The target will be hit through the listing of 20-30% of the gas distributor on the Bulgarian and London exchanges over the next couple of years.
Bulgargaz also becomes that first state-controlled enterprise to be involved in such a transaction.