The shareholders of starter battery maker Monbat (

) will have to decide at a general meeting, scheduled for May 16, as to whether the capital of the company should be raised from 19.5 mln leva to 39 mln leva, through the conversion of part of the profit for 2007 and the reserves into capital, x3news.com reported. For the purpose, the company will issue 19.5 mln new shares with 1 leva par value each.

The shares will be allocated among the shareholders proportionately to their holdings in the company prior to the capital raise. Investors who have purchased shares in the company no later than 14 days after the general shareholders' meeting has taken place, will be entitled to participate in allocation of the new shares.

Shareholders who have acquired shares no later than 14 days after the meeting will receive one new share for each share owned.

Monbat shareholders, registered with the Central Depository as such no later than 14 days prior to the meeting or as at April 30, will have voting rights at the general meeting.

The deadline for deals in Monbat's stock, which will grant investors voting rights for the meeting, is set for April 25, 2008. The shareholders will also decide on the distribution of 3.482 mln leva as dividend.

Shareholders who have obtained shares in the company no later than 14 days after the general meeting will be entitled to dividend.

A total of 11,239 shares in Monbat traded hands on the Bulgarian Stock Exchange (BSE) today. The stock depreciated by 1.84% to an average of 25 leva per share.