MERMAID Maritime has entered into a shares sale and purchase agreement for a 49 per cent interest in PTGC Co, a company incorporated in Cambodia, for US$19.7 million.

Following the acquisition, PTGC will become an associated company of Mermaid Maritime. PTGC's primary asset is legal and beneficial ownership of land in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

The seller is Leng Kheang, a 100 per cent owner of the total issued shares of PTGC prior to the entry into the agreement with Mermaid Maritime.

The purchase consideration sum took into account fair market valuation done on the property by established valuation companies, according to Mermaid Maritime.

In a filing to the Singapore Exchange, the company said that the investment in PTGC is "in line with its treasury function to maintain a portfolio of suitable investments of its cash reserves while preserving its liquidity for business operations".

The investment may also potentially provide a source of investment returns for the company in the future given Cambodia's economic outlook. The property has resale potential and residential or commercial development potential, added Mermaid Maritime.

It noted: "After taking into consideration other options available for cash management at this present time in this challenging oil and gas industry and the cost and benefits of the acquisition, the board considered that the acquisition is in the best interest of the company."