Anatoly Chubais claims attempts to buy up UES shares

Head of Unified Energy Systems Russia Anatoly Chubais has claimed that major Russian businessmen have been trying to buy up UES shares over the last two months.

While appearing at the nationwide energy forum "Russia's Fuel and Energy Complex in the XXI Century," Chubais said that the matter in hand concerned that 10% of the company's shares had been bought up for 600 million dollars.

Analysts believe, according to the UES head, that the group wants to buy 20-25% of the company's shares. Chubais said that a four per cent fall in the share price over two days meant a 30 million dollar profit. In his opinion, "these people who are buying shares and hit prices with their manipulations have enough influence in the country." "Someone is reaping political dividends, while someone else is making money from it," Chubais stressed. According to him, all this is hurting both shareholders and the state.