Petrolimex in place for year-end public offering

Việt Nam National Petroleum Group will complete procedures to list on the stock market by the end of this year. — Photo baotainguyenmoitruong.vn

HÀ NỘI — Việt Nam National Petroleum Group will complete procedures to list on the stock market by the end of this year, the company said in a public statement.

In the remaining months of this year, the company, known as Petrolimex, will finish selling its ownership in the Petroleum Logistics Service and Investment JSC on the request of the Government Inspectorate.

Petrolimex also plans to complete developing the restructuring plan for its gas station network and submit the plan to the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT). Petrolimex had more than  二, 三 五0 gas stations at the end of November  二0 一 五.

Suffering from lower global crude prices, Petrolimex earned a revenue of VNĐ 八 八.0 六 trillion (US$ 三. 九 八 billion) in the first nine months of the year, a decrease of  二 二 per cent from last year’s number.

The average nine-month price of US crude WTI fell nearly  二0 per cent to $ 四 一. 三 一 a barrel from last year’s price of $ 五 一 a barrel.

However, the company enjoyed higher pre-tax profit during the first three quarters of  二0 一 六, which was at VNĐ 四.0 六 trillion – an increase of  一 六0 per cent from the same period of last year. That result also helped Petrolimex reach this year’s pre-tax profit target.

Higher nine-month pre-tax profit came after Petrolimex did not suffer heavy forex rate loss since the State Bank of Việt Nam on January  四 started using the daily reference mid-point rate for local currency trading between the Vietnamese đồng and the US dollar.

A daily exchange rate helps local companies avoid accumulated forex-rate loss, because they are able to monitor the changes of exchange rate in their balance sheets on a daily frequency and calculate their business plans more specifically for each period, Petrolimex said in its statement.

The company also plans to import more gasoline to meet the domestic demand for fuel during the period of  二0 一 七 Tết (Lunar New Year) holiday at the end of January.

The company said in a document sent to the MoIT that it will import  七 五0,000m 三 of gasoline in December (the month before Tết), an increase of  一 二 per cent from last period’s number,  七 五0,000m 三 in January (the month of Tết holiday), an increase of  一0 per cent, and  七00,000m 三 in February (the month after Tết), an increase of  八 per cent.

Based on the analysis and forecast of local demand, Petrolimex has completed negotiations with overseas suppliers and Dung Quất Oil Refinery to make sure the supply is stable.

Imported gasoline will be stored at seven sites, which are the provinces of Quảng Ninh, Nghệ An, Bình Định, Nha Trang, the cities of Đà Nẵng and Cần Thơ, and HCM City.

The company has asked its subsidiaries to co-operate with each other to assure the logistics and supply will meet the demand of local businesses and people during the Tết holiday, especially those located in the remote disadvantaged areas, schedule their selling activities and publicise their timetables. — VNS