Renewable energy firm Tin Thanh Group has expressed a desire to become a strategic partner of Binh Son Refinery and Petrochemical Company Limited (BSR).

“Tin Thanh Group plans to buy a 5 per cent of stake in BSR in 2017,” BSR said on its website. The deal would cost the energy firm around VND3.6 trillion.

In addition, “Tin Thanh Group and BSR will propose the Prime Minister allow the energy firm to buy up to 55 per cent of its stake,” BSR added.

In May, Tran Anh Tuan, the industry and trade minister, signed a decision that valued BSR at US$3.2 billion, or roughly VND72.88 trillion.

Therefore, Tin Thanh Group would have to spend around VND39.6 trillion or $1.76 billion to purchase 55 per cent of BSR shares.

Representatives of Tin Thanh Group were not available to comment on the deal.

The company is headquartered in Tan Binh District, HCM City, and it was founded in 1992, focusing on energy, hi-tech agriculture and environment solutions.

Tin Thanh Group has VND200 billion in charter capital, which was raised from VND108 billion on January 3. The biggest shareholder is Nguyen Dinh Quyen with 80 per cent ownership, followed by Nguyen Thi Thanh Hien who holds 20 per cent, cafef.vn reported.

According to BSR, Tin Thanh Group will work to come up with the final contract in November and participate in BSR’s expansion plan.

“Tin Thanh Group will work as a middle company between BSR and US-based refineries and complete the development of projects before December 31,” BSR said.

BSR IPO delayed until January 2018

The initial public offering (IPO) of Binh Son Refinery and Petrochemical Co. Ltd. has been delayed until January 2018 instead of opening on Tuesday.

The company’s Chief Executive Officer, Tran Ngoc Nguyen, told Reuters on Monday that Viet Nam’s biggest oil and gas refinery firm planned to sell more than the original of 4 per cent of shares.

BSR expected to raise about $80 million from selling that 4 per cent stake, Nguyen said, without revealing further information about the coming plan.

The State-owned refinery business has delayed its IPO several times with the latest having been scheduled in November.

In the previous plan, BSR planned to raise nearly VND2 trillion from selling a 5-6 per cent stake in IPO and offload 49 per cent of capital to the strategic investor 12 months later to reduce the State’s ownership to below 50 per cent.

In the first nine months of 2017, BSR reported VND55 trillion in revenue and VND5.46 trillion in post-tax profit. — VNS