The Sihanoukville Autonomous Port listed on the Cambodian Securities Exchange on June 8, helping the port raise money for expansion. The port was the fifth company and third state-owned enterprise listed on the CSX.

Shares rose 6.35% immediately on listing to CR5,360 (US$1.31) each against an initial public offering (IPO) price of CR5,040 (US$1.26), the CSX said in a statement. Investors purchased all 21.4 million public shares in Sihanoukville Autonomous Port (SAP), insuring the listing of a 25% stake in the company was “fully subscribed,” one official said.

The IPO raised just over US$28 million, money which will now be used to build up the port’s resources, Seng Chan Thoeun, head of corporate finance at SBI Royal Securities, underwriters for the IPO, told Asia Cargo News.

“The proceeds will be used to acquire some port facilities,” he said.

Proceeds from the listing, some US$26.6 million, will be used to acquire 10 container trucks, expand the port’s inland container depot by some 52 hectares and extend the container yard, Seng told Asia Cargo News. Road access is also to be improved using the funds raised, the CSX in its statement.

Important in the listing was the role played by funds.

“Most of [the shares], or 79%, went to institutional investors,” Seng said. Of these, more than 50% were located overseas, he added. Most of these are known to be Japanese, with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) being a large buyer, reportedly holding a stake as large as 13%.

This is not the only port listing in the region, as Vietnam’s Vinalines is planning an IPO for December this year, official media have reported acting general director Nguyen Canh Tinh as saying. A reported 35% of the company’s stock will be floated.

Vinalines will be allowed to hold 65% of registered capital at key ports such as Haiphong, Saigon and Danang.

By Michael Mackey

Southeast Asia Correspondent | Bangkok