15pc OGDC shares to be sold by December

Posted on 11.14.06 by StockPK Team @ 4:19 pm    

Pakistan will complete the sale of 15 per cent shares in Oil and Gas Development Company Limited (OGDCL) through Global Depository Shares (GDSs) and secondary public offering till December this year.

The Privatisation Commission (PC) on Monday announced that Global Depository and Ordinary shares are likely to be offered by next week. The offer will represent up to 15 per cent of the share capital of OGDCL, comprising up to 645,139,000 shares.

The offer consists of (a) an institutional offering of up to 532,939,000 shares, in the form of ordinary shares to institutional investors in Pakistan on local bourses and GDSs to international institutional investors, including Qualified Institutional Buyers in the United States under Rule 144A, and (b) a retail offering of up to 32,300,000 ordinary shares to private investors in Pakistan, the Commission said.

The offer may include an over-allotment option for the institutional tranche of up to 79,900,000 additional shares, in the form of ordinary shares and GDSs. All of the proceeds from the offer will be received by Government of Pakistan, the selling shareholder.

The GDSs are expected to be listed on the London Stock Exchange, with each GDS representing 10 underlying ordinary shares. The ordinary shares are listed on the Karachi Stock Exchange, Lahore Stock Exchange and Islamabad Stock Exchange.

The price for the shares and GDSs offered to institutional investors will be fixed following a book building process on or around November 30, with the price and allocations for the shares and GDSs announced on or around December 1.

The first day of unconditional trading for the GDSs on the London Stock Exchange is expected to be on or around December 6. The retail offering will take place after the closing of institutional offering at a discount to the final institutional offer price.

This offer represents the first time that Pakistan’s domestic institutional investors will be participating in an international book building for a publicly traded, Pakistan-listed company. BMA Capital, Citigroup and Goldman Sachs are Joint Lead Managers with Citigroup and Goldman Sachs acting as Joint Global Co-ordinators and Bookrunners for the international offering and BMA Capital as Lead Manager and Bookrunner for the domestic offering and joint Lead Manager of the international offering.

“This is the largest ever equity offering of a Pakistani company abroad, and is, of course, a very important part of our ongoing privatisation programme,” Minister for Privatisation and Investment Zahid Hamid said while committing on transaction and added that this offering would help raise further awareness amongst the international business community of the exciting investment opportunities that are available in Pakistan today. He said it would also broaden OGDCL’s investor base and enhance its international profile besides expediting its transition into a truly world-class, publicly-listed commercial enterprise.

Arshad Nasar, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of OGDCL, said: “I am excited by today’s announcement, which represents a significant landmark in our Company’s history. The offer will allow us to build a diversified, high-quality investor base. As the leading exploration and production company in Pakistan, our primary objective is to enhance our production and reserve profile and, ultimately, to maximise value for our shareholders. We look forward to welcome our new shareholders as we embark on our next phase of growth.”

Source: The News