Seng Fong Holdings plans to raise $15.40mil from IPO

Seng Fong's IPO will involve the issuance of 160.87 million shares, comprising a public issue of 90.81 million shares and an offer for sale of 70.06 million shares

Rubber processor Seng Fong Holdings Bhd is aiming to raise gross proceeds of about RM68.1mil ($15.40mil) from its initial public offering (IPO) on the Main Market of Bursa Malaysia, the bulk of which will go towards repaying bank borrowings and working capital.

Our immediate objectives from the listing are to optimise production by increasing our total annual capacity through the hiring of additional workers for a second working shift and implementing the ESG initiatives to make our business to be more sustainable, said managing director Er Hock Lai in conjunction with the launch of the company's IPO prospectus.

In a statement, he said the proceeds used to fund working capital requirements will be used in part to expand annual production capacity to 166,000 tonnes by 2023 from the current capacity of 142,000 tonnes.

To further ESG initiatives, Seng Fong is also using proceeds raised from the IPO to repay bank borrowings used to install two solar systems that will help reduce overall electricity expenses.

We are also allocating proceeds raised from the IPO for the installation of two biomass systems using wood chips and replacing diesel to reduce overall fuel costs for our factories, he said.

We estimate that the use of the solar systems will result in savings of RM2.6mil ($0.59mil) while the biomass system will help us save RM3.5mil ($0.79mil), he said.

On top of the cost saving, the use of renewable energy to reduce electricity and fuel consumption is in line with our emphasis on having sustainable business operations and the need to conserve the environment, said Lai.

He added that the board of directors is recommending at least 50% of its annual net profit as dividend to shareholders, subject to approval from the board and shareholders.

In its prospectus, Seng Fong broke down the planned utilisation of the IPO proceeds: RM37.86mil ($8.56mil) or 55.6% will go towards the repayment of bank borrowings, RM19.72mil ($4.46mil) or 28.9% will fund its working capital, RM6.25mil ($1.41mil) will be used for the installation of biomass systems and the remaining RM4.28mil ($0.97mil) will be used for listing expenses.

Seng Fong's IPO will involve the issuance of 160.87 million shares or 31% of the company's enlarged number of issued shares, comprising a public issue of 90.81 million shares and an offer for sale of 70.06 million shares.

There will be a retail offering of 42.2 million shares with 25.95 million made available to the Malaysian public and 16.25 million reserved for application by eligible persons.

The institutional offering will comprise 118.67 million shares, with 64.87 million privately placed with bumiputera investors and 53.8 million shares privately placed with other institutional and selected investors.