Ningbo plans $3 billion IPO
Ningbo Port Group Ltd. plans to raise US$3 billion in an initial public offering in Hong Kong and Shanghai early next year, a person familiar with the situation said.
The person said Ningbo "is proposing an A- and H-share dual listing, but it could be concurrent or it could be consecutive." Ningbo operates China's second-largest port by cargo handled after Shanghai.
Class A shares are yuan-denominated shares of Chinese companies listed on mainland exchanges that are restricted to local investors and approved foreign investors. Class H shares are Hong Kong-listed shares issued by companies registered and based in China.
If Ningbo Port opts for a simultaneous listing, it will join Chinese lenders Industrial & Commercial Bank of China Co. and China Citic Bank Corp., which raised a total of US$27.3 billion from simultaneous listings in Hong Kong and Shanghai. ICBC's share sale in October marked the world's biggest IPO.
However, companies planning to list simultaneously on Hong Kong and Shanghai exchanges have been encouraged to list shares in China first, according to people familiar with the situation.
Copper and zinc producer Western Mining Co. abandoned its plan for a Hong Kong listing and raised 6.2 billion yuan ($824 million) in a July Class A-share issue. Bank of Beijing Co., China's largest city lender by assets, said it scrapped its plan to seek a dual listing due to regulatory hurdles. It debuted on the Shanghai Stock Exchange yesterday after raising 15 billion yuan from a Class A-share offer.
Ningbo Port, which covers the five port areas of Beilun, Zhenhai, Ningbo old port, Daxie and Chuanshan in northeastern China near Shanghai, operates 191 berths, according to its Web site. Ningbo Port's main business covers the handling, storage and transshipment of imported iron ore, containers for foreign and domestic trade, crude and finished oil, liquid chemicals, coal and other bulk goods, according to the Web site.
The port handled 312.17 million metric tons of cargo in the first eight months of the year, more than double the volume it handled a year earlier, according to China's Ministry of Communications. That was slightly below the 325.85 million tons handled by Shanghai.
BOC International Holdings Ltd., Credit Suisse Group and J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. have been mandated to handle Ningbo Port's deal, the person familiar with the situation said.
The person said Ningbo "is proposing an A- and H-share dual listing, but it could be concurrent or it could be consecutive." Ningbo operates China's second-largest port by cargo handled after Shanghai.
Class A shares are yuan-denominated shares of Chinese companies listed on mainland exchanges that are restricted to local investors and approved foreign investors. Class H shares are Hong Kong-listed shares issued by companies registered and based in China.
If Ningbo Port opts for a simultaneous listing, it will join Chinese lenders Industrial & Commercial Bank of China Co. and China Citic Bank Corp., which raised a total of US$27.3 billion from simultaneous listings in Hong Kong and Shanghai. ICBC's share sale in October marked the world's biggest IPO.
However, companies planning to list simultaneously on Hong Kong and Shanghai exchanges have been encouraged to list shares in China first, according to people familiar with the situation.
Copper and zinc producer Western Mining Co. abandoned its plan for a Hong Kong listing and raised 6.2 billion yuan ($824 million) in a July Class A-share issue. Bank of Beijing Co., China's largest city lender by assets, said it scrapped its plan to seek a dual listing due to regulatory hurdles. It debuted on the Shanghai Stock Exchange yesterday after raising 15 billion yuan from a Class A-share offer.
Ningbo Port, which covers the five port areas of Beilun, Zhenhai, Ningbo old port, Daxie and Chuanshan in northeastern China near Shanghai, operates 191 berths, according to its Web site. Ningbo Port's main business covers the handling, storage and transshipment of imported iron ore, containers for foreign and domestic trade, crude and finished oil, liquid chemicals, coal and other bulk goods, according to the Web site.
The port handled 312.17 million metric tons of cargo in the first eight months of the year, more than double the volume it handled a year earlier, according to China's Ministry of Communications. That was slightly below the 325.85 million tons handled by Shanghai.
BOC International Holdings Ltd., Credit Suisse Group and J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. have been mandated to handle Ningbo Port's deal, the person familiar with the situation said.