The Ministry of Transport (MOT) will sell 80.58 million shares of Viglacera Corporation, equivalent to 17.97 per cent of the company’s charter capital, in its upcoming State capital divestment this year.

According to the divestment plan, which was recently approved by the ministry, the shares will be auctioned on the stock exchange.

The minimum bidding price will not be lower than VND23,000 (US$0.99) per share or the average price of Viglacera in the 30 consecutive sessions before the announcement of the auction.

At this price, the deal is valued at more than VND1.85 trillion ($79.5 million).

After the sale, the ministry still holds 161.4 million shares of Viglacera, or 36 per cent of its capital, and retains the veto power at the company.

Shares of Viglacera, coded VGC on the Ha Noi Stock Exchange, gained 25 per cent this year, from VND17,400 per share to VND21,800 apiece on Tuesday. However, this price is still lower than the starting price for the auction.

The price jump was attributable to investors’ expectations for the ministry’s divestment this year. In 2018, MOT registered to sell more than 80 million shares of Viglacera with a minimum price of VND26,000 per share but the sale failed to attract investors amid gloomy market conditions.

The ministry is expected to float its entire stake of nearly 54 per cent in the company this year.

In a related development, Dragon Capital’s fund groups late last month sold its full holding of 44 million shares, equivalent to 9.8 per cent of Viglacera’s capital, to domestic investors.

Founded in 1974, Viglacera has developed from a brick and ceramic tiles manufacturer to one of the leading State-owned enterprises in the construction industry in Viet Nam. The corporation focuses on the manufacturing of building materials and development of infrastructure and industrial parks.

Ending 2018, the company reported net revenue of nearly VND9 trillion ($386.3 million) and after-tax profit of VND667 billion ($28.6 million), a slight decrease compared to the previous year.

In January, the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange approved the company’s listing of 448 million shares on this bourse. – VNS