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Rosneft's offering will raise $10.4 billion.

The company said in a statement that the pricing gives Rosneft a total value of $79.8 billion, a higher market capitalization than Russia's biggest oil producer, Lukoil. The shares are due to start trading next Wednesday in London and on Russian exchanges.

Preparations for the highly anticipated offering come as Russia shows off its oil-fueled economic clout, hosting leaders from the world's richest democracies in St. Petersburg for the Group of Eight summit this weekend.

Despite the anticipation, the listing has been dogged by OAO Yukos, which has sought to stop the IPO. The company sought a last-minute injunction at a British court late Thursday. It was unclear whether the injunction would be granted.

After a jittery start, bankers say investors' appetite rose throughout the marketing process for the IPO. Rosneft said Friday that the listing was 1 1/2 times oversubscribed, with total demand at $15 billion. Strategic investors accounted for 21 percent of the demand, with international investors from the U.S., Europe and Asia having made 36 percent of bids. Russian investors had bid for 39 percent of the shares while Russian retail investors had applied for 4 percent of the stock.

Posted by edelfenbein at July 14, 2006 7:13 AM