ThaiBev resumes proposed spin-off, listing of 20% of BeerCo unit on SGX

THAI Beverage (ThaiBev) is resuming the proposed spin-off and listing of its brewery unit BeerCo on the Singapore Exchange (SGX), which it had deferred due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Its wholly-owned subsidiary International Beverage Holdings, which holds all the issued ordinary shares of BeerCo, will conduct a public offering of up to 20 per cent of the total number of issued ordinary shares of BeerCo, the beer and liquor giant said.

ThaiBev : Y92 0% had in February 2021 received a no-objection letter from SGX for the proposed listing, but then deferred the proposed listing in April 2021 due to uncertain market conditions and a volatile outlook, exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic.

In a bourse filing on Thursday (May 5), ThaiBev said it has received confirmation from SGX that the latter’s initial no-objection letter will continue to apply to the resumption of the proposed listing.

BeerCo has 3 breweries in Thailand and a network of 26 breweries in Vietnam. Its business includes the production, distribution and sales of beer including the Chang and Bia Saigon brands.

In its financial year ended Sep 30, 2021, BeerCo posted a profit after tax of S$342.5 million and revenue of S$4.2 billion.

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ThaiBev said it sees significant growth potential in the beer business and expects the potential can be better developed with a dedicated board of directors and management team focused solely on growing the beer business.

It also expects the group can use part of the proceeds generated from the listing to repay debt and improve its financial position, for future business expansion plans.

The proposed spin-off listing is also expected to unlock shareholder value by providing a transparent valuation benchmark and allowing the core businesses of ThaiBev to be assessed and valued more distinctly.

In February 2022, Bloomberg reported that ThaiBev was still seeking to raise about US$2 billion from the brewery business's initial public offering (IPO) after shelving the plans due to the pandemic, according to people with knowledge of the matter.

On Thursday, Reuters reported that ThaiBev is looking to raise as much as US$1 billion through the IPO, citing sources familiar with the matter.

The size of the potential fundraising has been halved from a year ago because of the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and decreased market valuations, the sources said.

According to Reuters, another source also said ThaiBev could end up raising about US$800 million, adding that the launch of the IPO was subject to market conditions.

Shares of ThaiBev closed S$0.01 or 1.5 per cent lower at S$0.675 on Wednesday.