Keppel divests Vietnamese investment unit for up to US$10.9 million

KEPPEL Corporation on Tuesday said its private subsidiaries, Keppel Land and Kepventure, have agreed to divest a subsidiary, Fernland Investment, to Prime Value Asia for up to about US$10.86 million.

The transaction will see them sell their respective 55 per cent and 45 per cent stakes, as well as loans owed to the buyer.

A fifth of the consideration has been paid, with the balance to be in by the completion date of June 30, 2016.

Fernland owns 78.58 per cent of a Vietnam-incorporated company, which holds an office building in Hanoi.

It has unaudited book value and net tangible assets attributable to the sale shares of S$7.33 million as at end-December 2015.

Its aggregate book value attributable to the transferred loan is about S$6.39 million.

"The proposed divestment is in line with (Keppel Land)'s strategy to actively recycle capital to maximise returns," it said.

The transaction is not expected to have any material impact on the earnings per share and net tangible asset per share of Keppel Corp for the current financial year, the parent firm said.