Owner of Russian petrol station chain Trassa eyeing 2023 IPO, says board member

MOSCOW (Reuters) – The owner of Russian petrol station chain Trassa plans to hold an initial public offering (IPO) in 2023 if market conditions allow, it said on Tuesday, the latest firm to voice listing ambitions as Russia makes a tentative return to equity markets.

Russia could see its first IPO since Moscow sent troops into Ukraine on Feb. 24, should electric scooter firm Whoosh list in Moscow this week, a move other companies will be watching closely.

EuroTrans, which owns Trassa, is preparing to issue bonds this month as it moves along the path to becoming a public company, requiring funds to develop its fleet of trucks, construct new filling stations, charging stations and rebrand.

“Of course, we … are planning to go for an IPO because not only the bond market, but also the stock market is a market that values a company,” said EuroTrans board member Sergei Alexeenkov.

“We are taking certain steps to become a public company,” he said, adding that the parameters and timing of the company’s IPO would be decided later.

(Reporting by Maxim Nazarov; Writing by Caleb Davis; Editing by Alexander Marrow and David Evans)