PetroVietnam Oil Corporation (PV Oil), the second-largest petrol dealer in the country, will sell the State’s stake in a package deal instead of splitting it into different small sales, news site ndh.vn reported.

 

According to PV Oil General Director Cao Hoài Dương, the company has submitted a plan to the firm’s parent company – the Vietnam National Oil and Gas Group (PetroVietnam or PVN).

 

The company is trading more than 200.4 million shares on the Unlisted Public Company Market (UPCoM) as OIL. Its shares gained 0.7 per cent to close Friday at VNĐ15,400 (US$0.67) per share.

 

It has a total of 1.09 billion outstanding shares on the Vietnamese equity market.

 

PVN will represent the State to hold 35.1 per cent of PV Oil’s charter capital after the latter firm completes its equitisation plan.

 

Under its plan, PV Oil must sell 20 per cent of its charter capital via initial public offering (IPO). The company had done so in January 2018, raising around $184 million.

 

PV Oil will also have to sell nearly 45 per cent of its capital to a strategic investor. A number of foreign companies had shown interest including budget carrier Vietjet, HDBank, SK Energy from South Korea and Idemitsu from Japan.

 

However, due to a shortage of time and the complication of administrative procedures, PV Oil was unable to fulfill all required documents, Dương said, adding that no strategic investors were able to buy the shares.

 

In mid-November, SK Energy bought more than 3.55 million PV Oil shares for VNĐ56 billion ($2.46 million) to become a major shareholder with 54.12 million shares or 5.23 per cent of PV Oil’s charter capital.

 

Shell wants a bite

 

At a recent meeting with PVN Deputy General Director Lê Mạnh Hùng, Dutch royal petrol group Shell’s Vice Chairman Douglas Buckley said the firm was willing to purchase a part of PVN’s ownership in PV Oil and learn the requirements that a strategic investor must meet.

 

The offer was considered a move to help Shell make deeper inroads into the Vietnamese petrol market.

 

Shell was among a number of global firms that filed to become a strategic investor in PV Oil after the Vietnamese firm completed its IPO in January 2018.

 

Hùng said at the meeting that the requirements of a strategic investor for PV Oil were being developed and Shell could make direct contact with PV Oil for updates.

 

Shell was also willing to work with Vietnamese companies to supply liquefied natural gas (LNG) for upcoming projects of PVN and its sub-unit PetroVietnam Gas (PV Gas).

 

According to Hùng, PVN has two LNG terminal projects: the Thị Vải LNG Terminal and Sơn Mỹ LNG Terminal.

 

PVN and PV Gas were seeking short-term and long-term LNG suppliers via contract bidding for the Thị Vải LNG Terminal, while waiting for the Government’s approval on the Sơn Mỹ LNG Terminal. — VNS