Hanoi (VNA) – Many investors have showntheir keen interest in the equitisation of the Vietnam National Shipping Lines(Vinalines) as the country’s biggest sea transport company plans to hold theirinitial public offering (IPO) in early September.

According to the firm’s equitisation planapproved by Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc on June 20, Vinalines has a charteredcapital of more than 14.04 trillion VND (618.7 million USD) and over 1.4billion shares worth 10,000 VND each.

It will sell 20 percent of its chartered capital,equivalent to 280.92 million shares at the IPO, and another 14.8 percent, or 207.89million shares, to strategic investors through separate sales.

About 0.2 percent of the capital will be sold atpreferential prices to Vinalines’ employees and trade union. The State willcontinue to hold 65 percent of the capital, equivalent to 912.99 millionshares.

Acting General Director of Vinalines Nguyen CanhTinh said many investors have shown their interest in the equitisation. HyundaiMotor of the Republic of Korea has sent an official letter to Vinalines,expressing its wish to participate in the equitisation. Meanwhile, Siam Cementof Thailand is interested in the partnership in operating seaports.

Vinalines’ plan to reduce its ownership in HaiPhong Port from 93 percent to 65 percent, and in Da Nang Port from 75 percentto 65 percent is also attracting investors, he said, adding that the StateGeneral Reserve Fund of Oman has hoped to become a strategic shareholder of HaiPhong Port for a long time, and it recently repeated this intention.

Tran Tuan Hai, head of Vinalines’ Developmentand Communication Strategy Division, said in 2017, his firm and Rent-A-Port NV– a port investment and management company of Belgium’s Ackermans & vanHaaren – inked a memorandum of understanding on the possibility of cooperationwith a grain terminal, processing area, and logistics system projects. Thisdocument also included a provision allowing Rent-A-Port NV to buy 10 percent ofVinalines’ chartered capital when the Vietnamese firm is equitised.

An official of the Ministry of Transport saidwith its business activities focusing on sea transportation, seaport operation,and maritime services, Vinalines welcomes financial investors and majormaritime businesses to help it grasp trade opportunities and add to the growingflow of foreign direct investment into Vietnam.

At present, Vinalines operates 14 seaportsnationwide and owns the largest area of maritime storages in Vietnam throughnine associated companies and subsidiaries. It also owns a fleet of 84 vesselsaccounting for 25 percent of the total deadweight tonnage of the domestic seatransport market.

The firm said in recent years, it has beenrestructured successfully and cut down its debt from 9.1 trillion VND(equivalent to 400.8 million USD) in 2014 to 2.61 trillion VND (114.9 millionUSD) in 2017. 

Last year, it posted 15.79 trillion VND (695.6million USD) in consolidated revenue and 682 billion VND (30 million USD) inconsolidated profit, up 7.8 percent and over 20 times from 2016, respectively. -VNA