A third company backed by Singapore’s BW Group has filed papers to list in New York.
BW LPG, an Oslo-listed owner of VLGCs, filed a registration statement with US securities regulators to list its shares on the New York Stock Exchange.
The move was announced in Oslo just a day before BW-controlled Hafnia’s shares were scheduled to begin trading on the same market.
Kristian Sorensen-led BW LPG told the Oslo Stock Exchange that it will not issue new shares in connection with the new listing.
Papers filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission show that the company intends for its shares to trade in New York under the ticker symbol BWLP.
The company said it will maintain its Oslo listing, whose ticker symbol is BWLPG.
With 40 ships, BW LPG would become the largest VLGC owner by fleet size on US stock markets, and its market cap of NOK 17.1bn ($1.6bn) puts it close to that of Connecticut’s Dorian LPG, which has 25 VLGCs.
BW Group, led by chairman Andreas Sohmen-Pao and owned by his family, has a 36.8% stake in the LPG carrier owner.
Sohmen-Pao is also the chairman of BW LPG, and a shareholder rights agreement forged in connection with the New York listing gives BW Group rights to have proportionate representation on the VLGC company’s board of directors.
Investment bank DNB Markets is acting as financial adviser on BW Group’s New York listing. Legal advisers are Thommessen of Norway and US firm Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton.
The New York Stock Exchange approved Hafnia’s shares last week.
The product tanker owner’s chief executive, Michael Skov, said the new listing should broaden the company’s investor base and enhance its access to capital markets.
“Our presence in the US market will provide potential new investors direct access to our commercial performance and proven track record of shareholder returns, while also generating increased value for our current shareholders through additional trading liquidity,” he said.
BW Group’s first foray onto the New York Stock Exchange came with the $1.2bn merger of its wind turbine installation vessel owner, Cadeler, and Scorpio Group’s Eneti. BW Group owns 19.6% of that company, which also has Sohmen-Pao as its chairman.
