The long-running soap opera that is Petropavlovsk’s (POG) governance and ownership has been renewed for another season. Everest Alliance, which holds a 4.55 per cent stake in the Russian gold miner, used this week’s annual general meeting to decry a Takeover Panel investigation into a group of Petropavlovsk shareholders, which Everest says “is casting an unnecessary shadow over the company”.
The investigation was started more than a year ago, after a request from Petropavlovsk’s then-board. At the time, Everest – then known as CABS Platform – and fellow investors Kenges Rakishev and Slevin were calling for a replacement of the board with former directors including founder and one-time chief executive Pavel Maslovskiy.
That effort proved successful, though the investors have since faced continued scrutiny from the watchdog, which has given no indication when its probe might end. At issue is whether the shareholders, which collectively own more than 30 per cent of the group, have acted as a “concert party” under City rules. If they were determined to be acting in concert, it would cap their ability to buy more shares without making a formal offer for the company.
However, Everest claims the investigation has left it stigmatised, complicated its efforts to help attract new investors and hampered its ability to buy or sell shares in Petropavlovsk.
“We have voluntarily given hours of interviews, agreed to hand over confidential documents and allowed access to personal email accounts, all to assist the panel’s investigation,” said CABS in an emailed statement. “We want to invest in London and continue to support the turnaround at Petropavlovsk, but the Takeover Panel’s interminable investigation needs to end first.” All directors of the company are understood to have been interviewed as part of the probe.
The shareholder added that the watchdog has “apparently not come up with any evidence of violations of the city code”, though this appears to be inferred from its engagement with the Panel, rather than firmly established.
Petropavlovsk said it did not comment on “issues which pertain to bodies such as the Takeover Panel or to our individual shareholders”. A spokesperson for the Takeover Panel declined to comment.
