PE-backed Sunshine Oilsands prepares for Hong Kong IPO
Sunshine Oilsands, a Canadian oil exploration company backed by Hong Kong private equity firm Cross-Strait Common Development Fund as well as several Chinese state-owned enterprises, could raise up to $700 million through an IPO in Hong Kong. This implies a valuation of up to $2.8 billion for the entire company.
Sunshine Oilsands plans to sell new shares representing 25% of its expanded capital, Reuters reported, citing a source with direct knowledge of the situation. The IPO is expected to launch on February 6, with pricing to be settled on February 14 ahead of a February 21 trading debut.
The share sale will test investor appetite in Hong Kong, which saw proceeds from new listings drop 42% year-on-year in 2011, reaching a three-year low. Six relatively small listings have raised a collective $180.5 million so far in 2012.
The company, which owns 1.14 million acres of oil sands leases in the Athabasca region of Canada, last year raised about $230 million from a group of investors including Bank of China and China Life Insurance, as well as the Cross-Strait Common Development Fund. Orient International Resources Group is also a major shareholder.
Sunshine Oilsands is further evidence of Chinese interest in North America's unconventional energy reserves. Sinopec invested $4.7 billion in Syncrude in 2010, while PetroChina committed $1.7 billion to Athabasca Oil Sands a year earlier. China National Offshore Oil Corp. (CNOOC) has also been active, closing a deal in November for a stake in a Canadian oil sands project and entering into negotiations over an investment in FracTech International, which specializes in hydraulic fracturing.
In the shale oil space, Sinopec concluded a $2.2 billion deal with Devon Energy Corp. to develop five shale oil fields, while CNOOC agreed to buy one third of Chesapeake Energy's oil and gas assets in a south Texas shale deposit in late 2010.
More on North America
Latest News
Asian GPs slow implementation of ESG policies - survey
Asia-based private equity firms are assigning more dedicated resources to environment, social, and governance (ESG) programmes, but policy changes have slowed in the past 12 months, in part due to concerns raised internally and by LPs, according to a...
Singapore fintech start-up LXA gets $10m seed round
New Enterprise Associates (NEA) has led a USD 10m seed round for Singapore’s LXA, a financial technology start-up launched by a former Asia senior executive at The Blackstone Group.
India's InCred announces $60m round, claims unicorn status
Indian non-bank lender InCred Financial Services said it has received INR 5bn (USD 60m) at a valuation of at least USD 1bn from unnamed investors including “a global private equity fund.”
Insight leads $50m round for Australia's Roller
Insight Partners has led a USD 50m round for Australia’s Roller, a venue management software provider specializing in family fun parks.