OMV move 'a front for the Russians'

Austrian OMV's sale of its stake in Hungarian producer MOL to Russia's Surgutneftegaz earlier this week raises the suspicion that OMV was " just a front for the Russian group", MOL's boss claimed.

"If you look at the numbers, OMV's sales price is almost to the penny its input price, that is, its purchase price plus interest minus dividends, you know the formula," Reuters quoted MOL's executive chairman Zsolt Hernadi as saying.

"Suspicion arises ... that because the Russian investor bought this stake at exactly the input price, it (OMV) was just a front," Hernadi told the HUngarian parliament's Foreign Relations Committee.

"We don't know," Hernadi added.

Russian oil producer Surgutneftegaz said on Monday it would buy 21% of MOL from OMV for €1.4 billion ($1.9 billion), or nearly twice MOL's trading price on the Budapest bourse on the previous Friday.

"This can never become a friendly approach, it will never be considered friendly," Hernadi said. "The question is whether we'll consider it hostile or just uncoordinated."

OMV spokesman Thomas Huemer responded to Hernadi's comments by quoting part of an article from Tuesday's edition of Austrian daily Die Presse.

"During the summer of 2007, MOL chief executive Zsolt Hernadi ... made it clear to OMV that he would rather sell to any Russian oil giant instead of to OMV," the paper said in its report.

"Now nine years since OMV first showed interest in the Hungarian rival, his wish has been fulfilled."

OMV's sale came after MOL spent much of 2007 and 2008 successfully repelling a takeover attempt by OMV.

"I have to agree with the Alfa Bank trader who said he'd love to hire that salesman who can sell a 21% financial investment at a double the market price," Hernadi said.

MOL earlier said Surgut has not coordinated its purchase with the company and MOL continues to seek an independent strategy.

Both Hungary's government and opposition said they supported MOL's independence and promised to do all they can to prevent Surgut from taking over the company.