Avance Gas readying IPO for April

The LPG carrier company was established by Stolt-Nielsen in 2007, with Sungas Holdings and Frontline 2012 subsequently buying-in as partners in the company.

Frontline 2012 contributed eight 83,000 cu m VLGC newbuilds to the venture in November 2013, with deliveries slated from summer 2014 through to September 2015, adding to the existing fleet of six vessels.

"The board of Avance Gas sees strong opportunities within the LPG shipping segment and we believe the company will benefit from a listing on the Oslo Stock Exchange as a platform for further growth. As part of the IPO, Avance Gas will raise new capital to pursue consolidation opportunities, and in addition, the three major shareholders are considering selling shares in order to facilitate sufficient share liquidity", commented chairman Niels Stolt-Nielsen.

The global coordinator for the offering will be Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken, which will also act as a joint bookrunner alongside DNB Markets and Pareto Securities. Danske Bank, Nordea Markets and Swedbank will act as co-managers for the deal.