Vallianz tells bourse sale disclosure held up by talks with sponsor

Singapore

OFFSHORE support vessel company Vallianz Holdings took more than a week to disclose the sale of its subsidiary as it was corresponding with its listing sponsor.

That was the explanation the Catalist-listed company gave on Friday, after the Singapore Exchange (SGX) raised an eyebrow at the time taken to make the announcement.

Vallianz had sold a wholly-owned unit for a nominal US$1 on Dec 31, 2020, but filed the announcement on the bourse only on Jan 11, 2021, prompting queries from the SGX.

The company told sponsor Provenance Capital about the deal on the evening of Jan 4, after the year-end holiday break, according to the timeline released by Vallianz.

Upon learning that a disclosure was needed under Catalist rules, Vallianz prepared a draft statement for Provenance Capital's review on Jan 5.

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Over the course of the week, the company then amended its announcement and sale and purchase agreement (SPA) in response to comments from its listing sponsor.

By the time the SPA was re-signed and a copy provided to the sponsor, it was the evening of Jan 8, which was a Friday. Vallianz released its announcement on Jan 11, the next business day, since the company first had to seek its board's clearance, it said.

The hitherto-unnamed buyer for Offshore Engineering Resources and its subsidiaries has been identified as an entity owned by Singaporean businessman Tan Yam Seng.

The company, which had earlier said that the unit was sold to an unrelated third party, did not disclose the details in its initial announcement "due to confidentiality clauses in the SPA", Vallianz said, after the SGX asked why its identity was not stated earlier.

The company added, in reply to another question from the SGX, that it decided to sell the Mexico-focused business unit as its crew management services make up a non-core business and Vallianz has no other operations in that region.

Vallianz shares closed flat at S$0.051 on Friday, before the latest announcement.