Russia's X5 Retail Group buys out second franchisee

MOSCOW, April 2 (Reuters) - X5 Retail Group (PJPq.L: Quote, Profile, Research), Russia's largest food retailer by revenue, said it had bought its former franchisee in the Perm region in the Urals for $18 million including debt.

X5, controlled by billionaire Mikhail Fridman's Alfa Group, said in a statement it had acquired the Kama-Retail chain which comprises 28 soft discount stores with a net selling space of 9,300 square metres.

The deal is part of X5's strategy to buy out its franchisees in the regions. At the end of last year X5 had 868 stores and its franchisees operated 688 outlets in Russia and Kazakhstan.

A year ago, X5 bought 51 percent of a 65-store chain operating in and around the city of Yekaterinburg and has an option to buy the remaining 49 percent in the firm.

X5, created in 2006 through a merger of discounter Pyaterochka and supermarket chain Perekryostok, had posted a 38 percent jump in 2007 net profit to $141.4 million as its sales soared 53 percent to $5.32 billion. (Writing by Maria Kiselyova; Editing by David Holmes)