Hidroelectrica, the “jewel” of Romanian energy, is to be listed on the Bucharest Stock Exchange (BVB) in July, a move that the local capital market has been waiting for for years.

To better understand the importance of this moment and why we should be interested, even if we are not investors in the stock exchange, Panorama talked to Bohdan Mugescu, founder of the Romanian consulting company Atheneum Advisors, which has the status of an authorized consultant for SMT AeRO, an alternative trading system shares and bonds of BSE.

The IPO of the biggest energy company could actually become the biggest listing in Europe in 2023, in the context of which Turkish soda ash producer WE Soda, a company that was waiting for a valuation of 7.5 billion dollars and to raise 800 million dollars on the stock market, canceled the initial public offering on the London Stock Exchange just two weeks after the announcement.

Instead, Hidroelectrica, which operates more than 180 power plants and is 80% owned by the Romanian state through the Energy Ministry and 20% by Fondul Proprietatea, hopes to raise a billion euros through an IPO, according to Reuters.

The Romanian State retains its participation, will not sell shares in the offer and will not be entitled to sell shares after its completion for 12 months.

Instead, Fondul Proprietatea, run by US asset manager Franklin Templeton, is a minority shareholder that will place its stake, valued at 2.2 billion euros, valuing Hidroelectrica at 10 billion euros.

In fact, we are talking about a listing that would attract from one to 2.2 billion euros. This is a breath of fresh air for BVB and could lead the Romanian capital market among developed markets.

Read more at Panorama.ro