Siam Cement to sell stake in PTT Chemical for $1.1 billion

Thailand's leading industrial conglomerate Siam Cement Public Company Limited (SCC) said that it would sell 15.59-per cent stake in PTT Chemical Public Company (PTTCH) to local and international investors for expansion of its core businesses.

SCC would sell 236 million shares of PTTCH at 140 baht (approximately $4.65), for a total value of approximately 33,000 baht ($1.1 billion), the company said in a notice yesterday to the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET).

PTTCH was formed in 2005 through the merger of Thailand's National Petrochemical Company (NPC) and Thai Olefins Plc (TOC). SCC had made its initial investment in NPC in 1984 and in TOC in 1989.

Upon completion of the transaction, SCC would still hold around 67 million shares or 4.42- per cent stake in PTTCH.

Bangkok-based SCC's main businesses include chemicals, paper, cement, building materials, and distribution. It is the country's third-largest listed company valued at around $13.9 billion.

The company generates about half of its profit from its petrochemical business covering a full range of products, and is one of the largest integrated companies in Thailand and a key industry leader in the Asia-Pacific region.