Oligarch Kogan takes loan to buy Uralkali

Vladimir Kogan, a former banker and ex-chief of the Russian Federal Agency for Construction Housing and Utilities, is the most likely candidate to buy Kerimov's stake in Uralkali.

Interfax news agency has learnt it from a source close to Uralkali.

Kogan is negotiating with Sberbank on a loan for the purchase, according to the source.

Kommersant earlier reports referring to sources that Suleiman Kerimov wanted $4.5bn for a 21.75% stake in Uralkali (the current market price is about $3.6bn).

Businessman Arkady Rotenberg, major owner of Sistema company Vladimir Evtushenkov in partnership with Russneft's head Mikhail Gutseriyev, Norilsk Nickel (or Interros company owned by Vladimir Potanin who wanted to buy Uralkali from Dmitry Rybolovlev in 2010, but lost to Kerimov) and Uralkali shareholder Filaret Galchev were named as bidders for Kerimov's stake in Uralkali.

Rotenberg, Evtushenkov and representatives of Gutseriyev and Nornickel refuted information about negotiations.