OREANDA-NEWS. Yesterday, the Board of Directors of JSOC Bashneft took a decision to increase the Company's authorized share capital through a public offering of up to 37 million additional ordinary shares. The Board of Directors approved the share issue decision and the prospectus, while also giving their approval for a possible inclusion of Bashneft's shares in Moscow Exchange's First Tier quotation list

The Board of Directors approved a depositary agreement between JSOC Bashneft and Citi, and decided to convene an Extraordinary General Meeting of Shareholders by absentee vote on August 14, 2014, with the list of eligible participants to be compiled on 14 July 2014.

The meeting will consider the approval of a related-party transaction, in particular, an underwriting agreement between JSOC Bashneft and banks Morgan Stanley, Barclays, Sberbank CIB and/or their affiliates.

"The agenda items considered by the Board of Directors and the underwriting agreement proposed for approval at the shareholder meeting comprise a part of the corporate actions being undertaken to prepare the Company for a possible secondary offering of its securities," commented Felix Evtushenkov, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Bashneft. "A final decision on the offering is subject to a number of factors, including market conditions, and has not yet been taken. The parameters of a possible SPO, including the size of the stake in Bashneft to be offered by its majority shareholder, JSFC Sistema, and amount of shares that may be offered by the Company itself are currently under discussion."

The Board of Directors accepted the resignation of Igor Marchenko, a member of the Management Board and Vice President for Strategy and Development, who has decided to continue his career outside the Company. The Board of Directors expressed their gratitude to Mr Marchenko for the valuable contribution he has made to Bashneft's business.

The Board also approved a number of transactions related to the Company's day-to-day operations.