Shareholders of Transgaz, Romania’s national natural gas transmission operator, have approved the acquisition of a 51% stake in Petrostar S.A. Ploiești — the country’s foremost engineering, design, and consulting company serving the oil and gas extraction sector. The deal is valued at up to 4.5 million lei.
Petrostar, headquartered in Ploiești, brings over 70 years of experience in the industry.
The acquisition will proceed via one of two mechanisms:
- One option is for Transgaz to invest the full amount of 4,520,143 lei into Petrostar by purchasing newly issued shares. This would increase Petrostar’s total capital from 4,342,867 lei to 8,863,010 lei, through the creation of 57,217 new registered shares, each valued at 79 lei. As a result, the total number of Petrostar shares would rise to a maximum of 112,190.
- Alternatively, if existing shareholders choose not to buy all the newly issued shares, Transgaz will step in to purchase the remaining ones. Additionally, Transgaz may also acquire shares directly from current Petrostar shareholders at a price of 79 lei per share, in order to reach a 51% ownership threshold.
Transgaz will only be able to purchase shares from current Petrostar shareholders once existing shareholders have declined to exercise their legal rights to buy shares first. These transactions will be formalized through notarized agreements and will only proceed if they allow Transgaz to achieve a 51% controlling stake in Petrostar.
The Transgaz Group — comprising Romania’s gas transmission operator Transgaz SA, along with its subsidiaries Eurotransgaz SRL and Vestmoldtransgaz SRL in Moldova — doubled its net profit last year, rising from 198.5 million lei in 2023 to 391.4 million lei.
Transgaz has been listed on the Bucharest Stock Exchange since its initial public offering in December 2007. At its latest share price of 27 lei, the company’s market capitalization stands at 5.24 billion lei.
