Hong Kong's Swire Properties group has submitted bids worth a combined 9.71 billion yuan (US$1.34 billion) to take stakes in two Chinese companies that have land plot assets in Shanghai's Pudong district.
The bids, made by two Swire Properties wholly owned units, are for 40 per cent stakes in the two companies, the Hong Kong developer said in a stock exchange filing. The stake purchases would be in line with the group's strategy to focus on projects in mainland China, it said.
The land plot assets of the two companies - Shanghai Dongmao Real Estate Ltd and Shanghai Yaolong Investment Ltd - are expected to be used for retail, office and residential developments, according to the filing.
The stakes are currently owned by Shanghai Lujiazui Group, a property and finance company controlled by the state asset regulating authority in Pudong, and by a subsidiary of Shanghai Lujiazui Group respectively.
The reserved consideration prices for the two stake sales are 6.59 billion yuan and 3.12 billion yuan respectively, according to the filing.
Swire Properties' units are the only qualified bidders for the stakes, but the deal is pending a vote on whether shareholders of Shanghai Lujiazui Finance & Trade Zone Development, a subsidiary of Shanghai Lujiazui Group, approve waiving the company's first right to acquire the stakes. (US$1 = 7.2700 Chinese yuan renminbi) - Reuters
