KUALA LUMPUR: Ekuiti Nasional Bhd's (Ekuinas) special purpose vehicle Hallmark Odyssey Sdn Bhd has sold its 50.2 per cent controllilng interest in Icon Offshore Bhd to Singapore-based Liannex Maritime Sdn Bhd for RM172.7 million.
Liannex Maritime is privately owned by energy infrastructure company Yinson Holdings Bhd chairman and major shareholder Lim Han Weng.
The stake was sold to Liannex Maritime today via a direct business transaction at 63.5 sen a share.
The deal triggers a mandatory general offer, which will see Liannex offering 63.5 sen a share and RM0.001 an offer warrant for the remaining shares and warrants in Icon Offshore.
Hallmark has provided an irrevocable undertaking not to accept the offer for the remaining 5.8 per cent interest it owns in Icon Offshore.
"The decision to divest our majority stake in Icon was carefully premised on the current favorable market conditions coupled with the rare opportunity for Ekuinas to pass the baton to a highly credible and committed investor. With the investor's track record and financial stability in the O&G industry, we consider the transaction to be a win-win opportunity, mutually beneficial for both Ekuinas and Icon shareholders. This strategic divestiture is certainly a reflection of our commitment to maximise shareholder value and one that leaves ICON in capable hands to chart their next level of growth," Ekuinas CEO Datuk Syed Yasir Arafat Syed Abd Kadir said in a statement.
Following a debt restructuring exercise in 2018, Ekuinas reinvested in Icon Offshore to ensure the continued sustainability of its business.
At end of FY2023, Icon completed a capital reduction and share consolidation exercise, effectively eliminating its retained losses and consolidating its shares by a factor of five times.
The statement said Ekuinas has made cumulative gains of over RM500 million throughout its more than 10-year holding period in Icon Offshore.
"This places Ekuinas as one of the few investors within the oil and gas sector to successfully realise its investment," it said.
Icon Offshore is an offshore support vessel (OSV) provider in Malaysia and Southeast Asia. It primarily serves the Malaysian and Brunei coasts and has a total of 19 active OSVs. In FY2023, it recorded an active utilisation rate of 75 per cent, with an estimated orderbook of over RM300 million.
Icon Offshore's share price closed 5 per cent higher at 73 sen a share, giving it a market capitalisation of RM395.4 million.