State energy firm planning year’s largest IPO

PTT Oil and Retail Business Company (PTTOR) is preparing an initial public offering (IPO) that securities analysts predict will be the largest IPO in Thailand this year, with the stock becoming available to investors sometime during the final quarter.

PTTOR is a wholly-owned subsidiary of PTT, the partially privatized state energy conglomerate. The parent firm has been intending to list its subsidiary for at least two years, but the process has proven to be complicated. The issues involved separating the assets of the two companies.

PTT was partially privatized in 2001. It considered one of Thailand’s top blue-chip companies, and its stock has performed well for investors, making it one o the most sought-after Thai equities. The Ministry of Finance owns 51 percent of PTT’s shares. The conglomerate has other large and profitable subsidiaries, including PTT Exploration and Production, and PTT Global Chemical.

The appeal of PTT to investors is underscored by the fact that the company is pushing ahead with listing its subsidiary even as overall investor sentiment globally is weak because of the coronavirus pandemic. Most stock markets have plunged during the past month because of the public health crisis and its impact on economies and businesses.

PTT president and chief executive Chansin Treenuchagron said PTTOR would offer up to 2.7 billion ordinary shares, excluding any additional shares that could be issued for an over-allotment option.

PTTOR will also exclusively allocate up to 300 million newly issued ordinary shares to existing shareholders of PTT. Freshly issued ordinary shares of PTTOR will dilute PTT’s ownership to no less than 75 percent.

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