Keppel completes selling 28% interest in SPC

Keppel Corporation Limited announced Friday that it had completed a divestment program to sell about 28 percent of its stake in Singapore Petroleum Company Limited (SPC) to Hong Kong-based Kapital Asia Company Limited for S$180 million.

"Consequently, Keppel's stake in SPC has been reduced to 49 percent and SPC is now only an associate company of Keppel," the company said in a statement to the Singapore Stock Exchange.

Keppel said earlier that profit from this sale was about S$24.6 million. The company also said it will continue to pursue opportunities to dispose its remaining stake in SPC in line with strategy to divest its non-core assets.

Last month, a Keppel spokeswoman told Business Times of Singapore that Kapital Asia's group of Indonesian businessmen include one who is in the oil and gas business. But she could not reveal the nature of Kapital Asia's business.

Keppel is focused for the future with three key businesses: offshore & marine, property and infrastructure. Its offshore unit has recently completed build and repair three swamp barges for Indonesian drilling company PT Apexindo Pratama Duta.

Meanwhile, SPC is a regional oil and gas company with interest in refining, terminalling and distribution, marketing and trading of crude and refined petroleum products. Aside from these downstream business, the company was also engaged in upstream sector through its 15 percent of participating interest in Kakap block located in West Natuna sea. (robert)