Sembcorp buys remaining 30% stake in gas unit from Temasek's Seletar

SEMBCORP Industries (SCI) on Monday announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary Sembcorp Utilities (SCU) has completed the acquisition of the remaining 30 per cent interest in Sembcorp Gas for S$12.1 million.

SCU bought the stake from Seletar Investments, which is wholly-owned by Singapore investment firm Temasek Holdings. Temasek is also a major shareholder of SCI, with a 49.5 per cent interest as at the end of 2018.

With the transaction, the Sembcorp Gas, which imports and retails natural gas, is now a wholly-owned subsidiary of SCU.

The S$12.1 million consideration was based on discounted cash flows to determine fair market value.

The deal strengthens SCI's position as a provider of integrated energy solutions and a major gas player in Singapore, the group said on Monday.

The transaction is not expected to have a material impact on the earnings per share and net asset value per share of SCI for fiscal 2019 ending Dec 31.

Shares of SCI were trading up three cents or 1.3 per cent at S$2.30 as at 1.13pm on Monday, after the announcement was made.

Separately, Temasek last month announced a partial bid for control of conglomerate Keppel Corp, which also fuelled investor interest in SCI's marine business, Sembcorp Marine. The offshore and marine player is one of the main local proxies to Keppel.