 | Ananda Shipyard plans to go public by March 2011
27 December, 2010
Vessel-making pioneer, Ananda Shipyard and Slipways Limited (ASSL), has planned to go public by March next year in a bid to raise money to finance its expansion, its chairman said.
Abdullahel Bari, an ex-teacher of the Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology, said his company would use the fund to upgrade Ananda's shipyard situated on the bank of river Meghna so as to build bigger sea-faring vessels.
"We have almost finalised offloading of Ananda shares in the capital market. Part of the raised money would be used as working capital," Mr. Bari told the FE in an exclusive interview last week.
"An issue manager has been appointed to look after listing-related issues. We have submitted a proposal for listing to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). If we get approval, Ananda may float shares by March, 2011," he said.
Bari said the company wants to follow in the footsteps of leading Indian ship makers, which have raised hundreds of millions of dollars in the past couple of years from the Mumbai stock exchange to fund their expansion.
He said financing is a vital issue in shipbuilding sector as every new export order requires large investment. "A single bank can't meet our entire financing needs. Importers sometime pay advance money undertaking bank guarantee.
"Foreign companies who place the orders to us don't have faith in local bank guarantee. As a result, local shipbuilders have to secure guarantee from a foreign bank, which is very costly," he said.
Release link:http://www.thefinancialexpress-bd.com/more.php?news_id=121094&date=2010-12-27
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