SSL to sell 128 million shares to public
SSL to sell 128 million shares to public
JAKARTA (JP): Shipping company Samudera Shipping Line Ltd
(SSL) plans to offer 128 million shares to the public before its
listing on the Stock Exchange of Singapore Dealing and Automated
Quotation System (SESDAQ).
The company said the shares, about 30.4 percent of the total
enlarged capital, would be sold at S$0.39 each and were expected
to raise about S$48 million (US$32 million) from the public.
Overseas Union Bank will become the manager and lead
underwriter for the share offering. The offering will begin today
and close on Sept. 20.
Samudera Shipping Line Ltd, a subsidiary of Samudera Indonesia
Group, is involved in regional container shipping, owning and
chartering vessels for liquid and gas cargo in Asia.
SSL, a major feeder operator between the hub port of Singapore
and the outlying ports of other Asian countries, has set up
extensive networks serving more than 20 ports in Asia including
Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, China, Taiwan, Cambodia, the
Philippines, Vietnam and India.
Some of its regular customers are mainline operators such as
Hapag, Lloyd, Maersk Line and COSCO.
The company has shown sound performance over the past few
years.
The company recorded a total turnover of S$194.5 million in
1996 compared to S$45.9 million in 1994 and booked a net profit
of S$9.98 million in 1996 compared to S$0.97 million in 1994.
The company said it expected its business to grow in the years
ahead given the current strong growth of container traffic and
the rising demand for petroleum and petrochemical products in
Asia.
The company said container traffic volume was expected to
increase by 211 percent to 190 million tons equivalent units
(TEUs) in 2008 from 61 million TEUs in 1995.
With a projected 8.2 percent increase in chemical products in
the coming years, demand for tankers was also expected to
increase.
The company's executive chairman Soedarpo Sastrosatomo said
SSL would pledge to strengthen its network and enhance its
competence in regional container shipping and transporting liquid
and gas cargo in the region.
"We are confident of capitalizing on the growing opportunities
in the region," he said. (aly)