PSE OKs initial listing of OceanaGold IPO shares
THE Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) has approved OceanaGold Philippines, Inc.’s listing of 2.8 billion shares for its P7.9-billion initial public offering (IPO) under the bourse’s main board.
In a notice posted on its website dated April 12, the PSE said it had approved the initial listing of the stocks with a par value of 10 centavos each.
The local unit of Australian-Canadian miner OceanaGold Corp. delayed its listing date to May 13 from its original May 7 target.
The Philippine unit operates the Didipio gold and copper mine in Nueva Vizcaya in northern Philippines.
The PSE approval is subject to OceanaGold’s compliance with post-approval conditions and requirements of the exchange, the Securities and Exchange Commission and other relevant regulatory bodies, it added.
“The IPO will have a firm offer of 456 million secondary common shares with an offer price of up to P17.28, subject to a book-building process,” the PSE said.
The offer is beyond the minimum requirement of 10% provided in the mining company’s renewed financial or technical assistance agreement.
The offer period will be from April 29 to May 6, based on the latest prospectus dated April 12.
If the listing pushes through, the company will be the first Philippine IPO this year. It will be followed by the public listing of Saavedra-led Citicore Renewable Energy Corp. on May 31.
The proceeds of the maiden share sale will go to OceanaGold Philippines Holdings, Inc. (OGPHI), a wholly owned unit of the Australian-Canadian miner.
The Securities and Exchange Commission approved the IPO on March 12.
OceanaGold tapped BDO Capital & Investment Corp. as the domestic underwriter and bookrunner for the offer, while CLSA Ltd. will be the international underwriter.
Last month, OceanaGold Chief Executive Officer Gerard M. Bond said the company is looking for another mining site in the country.
He added that OceanaGold is looking at spending $5-$7 million this year on drilling and exploration.
OceanaGold expects to produce 120,000 to 135,000 ounces of gold and 12,000 to 14,000 tons of copper at its Didipio mine this year.
PSE President and Chief Executive Officer Ramon S. Monzon said in March that he remains optimistic that the local bourse operator would hit its target of six IPOs this year.
The Senate seeks to start next month plenary debates on a measure that seeks to simplify the tax regime for the mining industry.
The House of Representatives approved the bill in September. Its version proposes margin-based royalties and a windfall profit tax on large-scale miners.
The Finance department wants a simpler mining regime with just four windfall profit tax tiers from 10 tiers under the House bill. — Revin Mikhael D. Ochave