The Prime Minister has given the green light to the equitisation plan for Song Da Corporation.

Accordingly, it will be carried out by selling parts of the State-owned capital and issuing shares to increase its charter capital to VND4.5 trillion (US$198.3 million).

The plan allows the business to launch its initial public offering (IPO) of 450 million shares for VND10,000 each or $0.44, with the State retaining 229.5 million shares, making up 51 per cent of the charter capital, until the end of 2019.

State capital in the corporation will be reduced to below 50 per cent of the total charter capital in 2020.

Meanwhile, 822,000 preferential shares or 0.183 per cent of the charter capital will be sold to the company’s staff and 135 million shares equivalent to 30 per cent of the charter capital to strategic investors. Over 84.7 million shares will be put up for public auction.

The Prime Minister authorised the Ministry of Construction to set up the criteria to choose strategic investors and asked Song Da Corporation to handle land issues, pay annual land lease fees and implement the management and use of land, in line with relevant regulations.

The company’s total labourers at the time of announcing the corporation’s value was 464 people, 412 of whom will move to work at Song Da Corporation-Joint Stock Company, and the remainder will leave the company.

Some 55 State-owned companies were equitised in 2016. The country has targeted to equitise 137 State-owned enterprises in four ministries and branches, and 32 localities and four economic groups will be prioritised in the period between 2017 and 2020. — VNS