ThaiBev revives IPO plan for beer unit, eyes potential partners

Thai Beverage is reviving plans for an initial public offering of its beer unit to take advantage of a rally in global stock markets, besides weighing the induction of an equity partner, according to company executives.

The IPO of the beer unit called BeerCo is possible as early as the third quarter of next year if ThaiBev is able to decide on the share sale by December, Michael Chye, chief of the beer products group, told reporters in Bangkok on Tuesday (Oct 1).

Separately, Thapana Sirivadhanabhakdi, chief executive of Singapore-listed ThaiBev, told Bloomberg the company has “received good interest” from potential partners for the beer unit and the firm is holding talks with two of them. Although he mentioned that plans were afoot for BeerCo’s IPO, he didn’t say if the company would still bring in a partner in the event of the share sale going ahead.

The latest plan comes two years after ThaiBev, controlled by tycoon Charoen Sirivadhanabhakdi, shelved a proposal to raise as much as US$1 billion due to weak market conditions. That’s changed now amid a rally in global stock markets coinciding with central banks around the world pivoting to monetary easing.

“Interest rates have started to fall worldwide and the stock markets are coming back strongly,” Chye said. “Therefore, we are looking at the IPO again. We will make a decision soon, may be in couple of months.”

ThaiBev is also exploring options for its spirits business, including an initial public offering in Singapore, Bloomberg reported last year. The company held preliminary discussions with banks on alternatives including selling a stake in the maker of the country’s best-selling liquor brands Mekhong and Ruang Khao.

Prapakon Thongtheppairot, president and head of spirits business of ThaiBev said, the company would prioritise beer unit’s IPO for now as it will help pave the way for listing of other businesses in the future.

ThaiBev reported a revenue of 217.06 billion baht (S$8.5 billion) in the nine months ended June, little changed from a year earlier, with Ebitda rising 2.2 per cent to 38.6 billion baht. The beer business posted a 10.2 per cent increase in Ebitda to 11.9 billion baht, according to a company statement. BLOOMBERG