PetroChina, the nation's largest energy company, plans to issue up to 4 billion A shares in its Shanghai initial public offering and is expected to make its trading debut on November 5.
PetroChina, the listed arm of China National Petroleum Corp, plans to issue around 2.2 percent of its enlarged share capital in Shanghai, the Beijing-based company said in a statement filed with the Shanghai Stock Exchange late on Sunday.
Consultation with investors on pricing began yesterday. Investors can start applying for shares from Thursday and a final price will be announced on October 30, the oil company said.
The country's largest oil and gas group will offer 70 percent of the shares to retail investors and 30 percent to institutions, although the ratio could be adjusted in favor of the retail tranche if demand is strong.
PetroChina said it will use the money raised in the IPO to fund five projects, including the construction of oilfields and the expansion of ethylene capacity.
Analysts estimated the IPO could raise $8-9 billion if pricing is similar to that of its Hong Kong shares. This would make it the largest domestic listing this year.
The A-share listing plan boosted PetroChina's Hshares, making it the most actively traded stock in Hong Kong yesterday. Its H shares posted positive territory for most of the day, but edged down 0.7 percent to close at HK$18.78 amid the Hong Kong market's sharp decline sparked by a global equities sell-off.
Anticipation of PetroChina's Shanghai debut has driven up its shares in Hong Kong and New York by more than 25 percent already this month, despite the departure of Warren Buffett from its shareholders.
Warren Buffett, the largest foreign portfolio investor in PetroChina, said last Thursday he had sold his entire stake in the company.
PetroChina's third-quarter report released last week showed oil and gas output grew 5.6 percent, up from a 3.7 percent year-on-year rise in the first half of 2007 and bringing the company toward its full-year target of 5.3 percent, which it said it was on track to meet.
It also announced year-on-year growth of 4.3 percent in oil and gas output to 828.1 million barrels of oil equivalent for the first nine months of this year.
Source: China Daily
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