Keppel Infra Trust preferential offer over 1.8 times subscribed

KEPPEL Infrastructure Trust (KIT) has received 832.3 million applications for its recently launched preferential offering, 1.8 times more than the total number of 455.31 million units offered, trustee-manager Keppel Infrastructure Fund Management said on Wednesday.

The preferential offering, which closed on April 4, was made to entitled unitholders on a non-renounceable basis of 118 preferential offering units for every 1,000 existing units held. Each unit was priced at S$0.441 apiece to raise around S$200.8 million.

The preferential offering was also part of a S$500.8 million equity fund raising, increased from S$450 million, which also comprised a placement that raised S$300 million.

Substantial unitholder Keppel Infrastructure Holdings has accepted in full its provisional allotments of units under the preferential offering.

Provisional allotments of the offering not validly accepted by entitled unitholders or unitholders not valid to participate in the offering will be given to applications for excess preferential offering units, KIT said in its the filing with the Singapore Exchange (SGX).

In this, preference will be given to applicants for the rounding of odd lots. Last in priority are directors of trustee-manager Keppel Infrastructure Fund Management, substantial unitholders who have control or influence over KIT's day-to-day affairs, and those with representation on the board of the trustee-manager.

The preferential offering units are expected to be credited to unitholders before being listed on the mainboard from 9.00am on April 15.

A bulk of the proceeds from KIT's equity fund raising will be used to partially repay a loan facility taken for the A$770 million (S$737.6 million) acquisition of Ixom HoldCo, a water treatment chemicals distributor. About S$490.7 million will be set aside for the partial repayment of the loan, while about S$10.1 million will be used to pay for fees and expenses incurred on the fundraising exercise.

Matthew Pollard, chief executive officer of the trustee-manager, said: "We are heartened by the strong support for our fundraising exercise, which reinforces that Ixom is a strategic and complementary addition to the trust's portfolio."

He added Ixom will enhance the stability of the distributions for the unitholders of KIT over the long-term, backed by its "leading market position and favourable industry fundamentals".