Singapore: In a flurry of releases to the Singapore Exchange, Chinese shipyard JES International announced a large restructuring and halted trading of its shares.
JES said it is restructuring subsidiary Jiangsu Eastern Heavy Industries (JEHI) to seek an amicable way forward with its creditors. JEHI has filed an application to Taizhou Intermediate People’s Court in Jiangsu province. If successful, a manager will be appointed by the court to oversee the restructuring.
JES expanded rapidly in the latter part of the shipping boom through to 2008. However, it has since seen orders fade away.
The shipbuilder noted in a release: “In recent years, due to a decline in the shipbuilding industry as well as inadequate internal management, JEHI has sustained significant financial losses.”
JES is trying to forge a way to go through the financial restructuring while keeping the yard open.
JES also announced it was nixing the planned 51% acquisition of Scibois, a forestry firm located in the Democratic People’s Republic of Congo.
Furthermore, a planned additional listing application for 183m subscription shares has been withdrawn.
The shipbuilding group joins a number of private, listed Chinese yards to have run into significant financial difficulties in the protracted shipbuilding downturn, most notably Hong Kong-listed Jiangsu Rongsheng Heavy Industries.
JES shares were at just 2.6 Singapore cents when trading was halted down from a 12-month high of 15.7 Singapore cents.
