HANOI: HCM City Infrastructure Investment JSC (CII) has removed the property development unit from the company’s portfolio to raise the limit of foreign ownership to 70 per cent. The decision was made after the firm transferred all of its responsibilities and obligations concerning the BT Thủ Thiêm project to the North Thủ Thiêm Co Ltd. “The transfer helps the company withdraw from the real estate sector and allows foreign investors to increase their stake in the company from the current 49 per cent,” CII said in a statement on Tuesday.
The company’s management board on the same day also decided to do away with the real estate and water business units. The water business unit will be handed over to the Sai Gon Water JSC. The board of managers gave its approval to the company to increase the limit of foreign ownership to 70 per cent from the existing 49 per cent and requested the board of directors to complete the necessary documents at the earliest. The company has changed its profile in the Business Registration, registered with the State Securities Commission and related agencies for the increase of foreign ownership, and published the news on the firm’s website.
The company, listed as CII on the HCM Stock Exchange (HOSE), early this month sold more than 1.9 million shares of the CII Bridges and Roads Investment JSC, which is listed as LGC on the HOSE. CII has also been given the nod to convert bonds worth VNĐ528.7 billion of the Metro Pacific Tollways Corporation to 29.37 million shares of LGC. After these two deals, CII will reduce its ownership in LGC to 49 per cent to comply with the firm’s 2016 shareholders meeting resolution.
The company will earn VNĐ424 billion from the bond conversion, CII said, adding that the income will be included in the company’s financial balance sheet. In the first half of the year, CII recorded revenue of VNĐ521 billion and net profit of VNĐ165 billion, a decrease of 32 per cent and 69 per cent, respectively, over a year.
