Vopak's AVTL JV files for $415 mln IPO prospectus with India regulator (updated)

Aegis Logistics

19/11/2024 13:51

(Adds details and background from paragraph 3)
       Nov 19 (Reuters) - Dutch tank storage company
Koninklijke Vopak  VOPA.AS  said its Indian joint venture Aegis
Vopak (AVTL) filed for an initial public offering (IPO) of 35
billion rupees ($414.75 million) on Tuesday with the Securities
and Exchange Board of India. 
    "The formal approval process with SEBI is expected to take
several months", it said in a statement.
    The IPO consists of a fresh issue of shares, with the parent
company not diluting any stake. The proceeds from the IPO will
mainly be utilised for re-payment of debt and for acquiring a
cryogenic liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) terminal in the Indian
city of Mangalore. 
    Aegis Vopak, in which Aegis Logistics  AEGS.NS  has a 50.1%
stake and Koninklijke Vopak holds over 47%, is among India's
largest operators of tank storage terminals for LPG and liquid
products. 
    Domestic LPG demand has remained strong over the past few
years, with government initiatives and a rise in industrial
activity providing significant support to the sector, AVTL's
draft prospectus showed citing data from the Petroleum Ministry
and analytics firm CRISIL. 
    The Indian IPO market has been booming in 2024, with 290
companies raising more than $15.5 billion as of mid-November,
which is more than double the amount raised last year, data
compiled by LSEG showed. 
    The red-hot IPO market, however, has recently shown some
signs of cooling amid underwhelming corporate earnings and an
exodus of foreign funds. 


($1 = 84.3880 Indian rupees)

 (Reporting by Mathias de Rozario and Nishit Navin, Editing by
Louise Heavens and Krishna Chandra Eluri)
 ((Mathias.derozario@thomsonreuters.com))