Glencore share price: Miner poised to take 49% stake in Russia’s Russneft

Glencore’s (LON:GLEN) shares have been trading lower today amid news that the miner is poised to take a 49 percent stake in Russneft. Mikhail Gutseriev, the billionaire businessman and chairman of the Russian oil producer, said in an interview on the Rossiya 24 TV channel today that Glencore would receive the stake as part of a debt settlement.

The Swiss-based mining group has been in talks with Russneft to convert $900 million of debt into an equity stake. The deal would see Glencore swap the interests in various Russneft subsidiaries for a 49 percent in the parent company.
“All the subsidiaries will be folded into the main (holding) company. The deal is being signed, we have been finishing the shareholders agreement. Glencore will own 49 percent in Russneft,” Gutseriyev stated. Glencore has not yet commented on the matter.
In separate news, Glencore’s Australian-listed iron ore unit, Sphere Minerals said it would book a $192.5 million writedown on its Askaf iron ore project in Africa, saying plunging prices made it unprofitable to develop. Total impairments at the subsidiary last year were $240.7 million, with the company also writing down exploration spending at the El Aouj and Lebtheinia projects, Sphere said in a statement today.
Glencore’s share price has declined 0.64 percent to stand at 285.50p as of 10:07 GMT. According to the Financial Times, as of 7 March 2015, the consensus forecast amongst 27 polled investment analysts covering Glencore has it that the FTSE 100-listed company will outperform the market.
As of 11:00 GMT, Wednesday, 11 March, Glencore Xstrata PLC share price is 284.45p.