OREANDA-NEWS. August 10, 2007. Despite a seizure of RussNeft's shares, the oil company has nearly floated shares. The Federal Financial Markets Service (FFMS) officially stated that the additional share issue was suspended due to substantial regulatory infringements.

The company's representatives point out that the additional issue was planned in February in order to raise funds for debt settlement and is not connected with a recent agreement between RussNeft's ex-President Mikhail Gutseriyev and Russian businessman Oleg Deripaska on the company's sale.

RussNeft originally planned to float 100 percent of its share capital worth a total of RUR100m (approx. USD3.95m), the RBC Daily newspaper reported today, citing the company's Vice President Eduard Sarkisov.