Controversial Kazakh miner Eurasian Natural Resources Corporation has jumped nearly 25% after its major shareholders said they were considering a bid for the company.
In a statement, oligarch Alexander Machkevitch said:
[I am] reviewing a number of potential opportunities which include the possibility of forming a consortium together with Mr Alijan Ibragimov, Mr Patokh Chodlev and the Kazakh government to make an offer for ENRC.
He said the deliberations were at an early stage and there was no guarantee an offer would be made. They have until 17 May to make a firm decision.
Machkevitch owns 14.59% of ENRC and the other oligarchs and the government have around another 42%. Fellow miners Kazakhmys controls 26%. ENRC falls foul of new stock exchange rules which demand a higher free float, and there had been speculation it would issue new shares to meet the requirements.
Machkevitch's statement was in response to FT Alphaville reporting the oligarchs were considering taking ENRC private.
Earlier this week there were reports the Serious Fraud Office had demanded documents from a law firm investigating corporate governance issues at ENRC. The FT said this was a sign the SFO could be considering a formal investigation into the miner.
News of the bid approach has lifted ENRC 54.1p to 283.9p while Kazakhmys has climbed 85.7p to 395.8p.
