RusHydro, Inter RAO Shares Gain as Government Pledges Withdrawal

OAO RusHydro and OAO Inter RAO UES rose after Russia’s Economy Minister said the state will sell its entire stake in the power utilities by 2016.

RusHydro added 4.6 percent to 84.89 kopeks, the highest intraday level since May 22, as of 4:42 p.m. in Moscow. Inter RAO climbed 1.7 percent to 2.7 kopeks.

“Private ownership frequently proves itself more effective, this can be traced to the Russian power sector as a whole,” Dmitry Bulgakov, an analyst at Deutsche Bank in Moscow, said by phone. “It creates more incentives for value creation and cost-cutting.”

The government also plans to reduce its stake in Federal Grid Co., Russia’s monopoly for high-voltage power transmission lines, to 75 percent and one share by 2016. Federal Grid traded up 1.4 percent at 19.23 kopeks.

To contact the reporter on this story: Ksenia Galouchko in Moscow at kgalouchko1@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Gavin Serkin at gserkin@bloomberg.net