Surgut may be locked out of MOL's AGM –report

http://www.reuters.com/article/rbssO...

Tue Apr 21, 2009 3:34am EDT

BUDAPEST, April 21 (Reuters) - Russian Surgutneftegaz (SNGS.MM), which recently bought 21 percent of MOL MOLB.BU, may be locked out of the Hungarian oil and gas company's annual general meeting, business daily Napi Gazdasag reported.

Surgut, Russia's fourth biggest oil producer, bought the stake in MOL from Austrian oil company OMV (OMVV.VI) for 1.4 billion euros ($1.8 billion) in a surprise move last month, earning the ire of both MOL and Hungary's government. [ID:nLU169740]

The paper said Surgut breached Hungarian legislation by failing to notify the Hungarian Energy Office of the deal, which could result in Surgut being unable to exercise its voting rights at MOL's AGM on Thursday.

The Hungarian Energy Office would not comment, while MOL said it could not comment on individual shareholders.

Earlier this month, MOL proposed amendments to its articles of association which analysts said were designed as a defence against hostile takeovers.

According to a planned amendment, shareholders must declare who the "ultimate beneficial owner" of their shares is before their meetings, if requested by MOL's board of directors. Other proposed amendments would strengthen the special voting rights of the "B" series MOL share and delete the section which says that the special rights exist only if the share is held by the Hungarian state.

At 0713 GMT, MOL stock traded down 0.7 percent at 10,670 forints on the Budapest Stock Exchange, broadly in line with losses in the wider market . (Reporting by Gergely Szakacs; Editing by Dan Lalor) ($1 = 0.7748 euro)