Kazakhmys chairman nets £833m from share sale

published 5 October 2010

Kazakhmys chairman Vladimir Kim has sold about 11% of the FTSE 100-listed copper mining company's stock, pocketing a whopping £833m.

He sold about 58.9m shares at 1,423p a time, leaving him with just under 150m shares in the company, or 28%.

'The transaction enables Mr Kim to diversify his investment portfolio whilst retaining a significant long-term shareholding in Kazakhmys,' the company said as it announced the share sale.

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He sold the shares to the government, which now owns 26% of the company. Kazakhmys owns copper mines across Kazakhstan and also operates coal and gold mines, a power plant and an oil project.

Kim is selling at a time when Kazakhmys shares have climbed more than 40% in the past year.

In August, it said it remains positive on the copper market after an improvement in prices for the red metal helped it post a sharp rise in revenues and earnings in the six months to June 30.

Revenues climbed to $1.52bn from $1.12bn over the same period a year ago, while underlying profits were up to $696m from $269m. Average copper prices climbed by 73% to $6,981.