Nguyen Canh Tinh, acting CEO of Vinalines, said that a South Korean investor has shown interest in Vinalines’ shares. However, the investor will unlikely participate in this second auction, due to the short time of registration period. 

The South Korean investor targets 10% of the amount shares on offer, Tinh said. 

In the event that the upcoming auction turns out unsuccessful, Vinalines’ equitization could still be considered significant improvement compared to previous years, he continued, adding that Vinalines will continue to improve its performance to attract investors. 

On September 5, Vinalines raised a meager VND54.3 billion (US$2.33 million) or only 1.11% of the shares offered at the IPO at an average price of VND10,000 (US$0.43) apiece. A total of 42 investors took part in the auction, of whom 40 were individual investors and two organizations, according to an announcement by the Hanoi Stock Exchange (HNX). 

The result remained modest compared to Vinalines’ expectation of at least VND4.89 trillion (US$210 million). 

Under the initial plan the shipping firm offered 488.82 million shares or 34.8% of its charter capital in the IPO at a starting price of VND10,000 (US$0.43) apiece. After the IPO, the government would retain a 65% stake and another 0.2% of charter capital was set to be sold to employees.

According to the initial prime minister-approved equitization scheme in June, Vinalines would offer 207.2 million shares or a 14.8% stake to strategic investors, and 280 million shares, or a 20% stake in the IPO. However, the move failed to materialize. The share amount of 207.2 million was added to the amount offered at the IPO. 

The firm’s IPO had been delayed several times as it needed to undergo a longer-than-expected restructuring process.

Vinalines currently manages and operates a diverse fleet including container ships, bulk carriers, oil tankers, and other types of cargo vessels. The Vinalines fleet has large bulk carriers up to 73,000 DWT, 1,800 TEU container ships, and 50,000 DWT oil tankers.

Of the total of 130.9 million tons of cargo shipped last year by Vietnamese vessels, Vinalines’ fleet took 20.2%. 

By the end of 2017, Vinalines had completed divestment in 39 companies for VND2.4 trillion (US$105 million) in return, resulting in a net profit of VND360 billion (US$15.8 million).

Overall, the firm saw its debt reduced by VND10.6 trillion (US$440 million) in period 2014 – 2017, according to Le Quang Trung, vice general director of Vinalines. 

In the first six months this year, Vinalines posted revenue of VND533 billion (US$22.83 million) and net loss of VND1.14 trillion (US$48.83 million). For the remaining six months, Vinalines targeted profit of VND143 billion (US$6.12 million).