OREANDA-NEWS. July 30, 2010. Serhiy Tihipko, Vice Prime Minister for Economy, brings up, once again, the non-transparent nature of the privatization sale of Luganskteplovoz, the major mainline locomotive producer in Ukraine. The high placed government official expects that the court will cancel the privatization of the 76% stake acquired in the Luhanskteplovoz by the Transmashholding of Russia in June 2010. Serhiy Tihipko went on to add that the competition had not been transparent due to the fact that the State Property Fund of Ukraine (SPF) had excluded Mantara Holding, a company close to the Pryvat Group, from the tender process.

Millennium Capital considers the news as neutral for LTPL in view of the recent agreement signed recently by the SPF and Transmashholding to the effect that the two parties are not in debt to each other. However, Millennium Capital has to note that Pryvat has found a good lobbyist of its interest in the person of Vice Premiere Serhiy Tihipko, as Mantara Holding is determined to continue the court proceedings seeking to void the privatization sale results.