TBILISI - Georgian Railway will hold an initial public offering for up to 25% of its shares in the form of Global Depositary Receipts (GDR) on the London Stock Exchange on May 24, a source in the Georgian government administration told Interfax.
"Bid will be accepted until May 23, and trading is scheduled to begin on May 24," he said.
He said the target price range has been set at $15.25 to $19 per GDR, and the company could raise up to $250 million in the IPO.
Citigroup and Goldman Sachs are the coordinators of the IPO.
Georgian Railway, which is wholly owned by the government, has charter capital of GEL1,049,751,200, split into shares with par value of GEL1 (about $0.60). The Economy and Sustainable Development Ministry holds 76% of shares, and 24% are held by the Partnership Fund, which was set up to support financing of strategic investment projects and has been granted the right to place assets it holds on international exchanges.
Georgian Railway had assets of GEL2.416 billion and equity of GEL1.802 billion at the beginning of 2012. The company increased net profit by 71.8% to GEL174.4 million in 2011.
Georgian Railway, an integral part of the East-West transport corridor, operates 1,324 km of track in Georgia. The railroad system includes 45 tunnels, 1,714 bridges and ferry crossings to Russia and Ukraine.
