PetroChina plans to debut on the Shanghai bourse in October by raising at least 40 billion yuan, in a bid to tap the red-hot mainland equity market.

PetroChina, the Hong Kong-listed arm of China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), the nation's No 1 oil and gas group, will issue 4 billion A shares at around 10 yuan each, which will probably account for approximately 2 percent of its enlarged share capital, a CNPC executive told China Daily yesterday.

"The new shares will be priced on the basis of PetroChina's share price in Hong Kong. The indicative price for the initial public offering might hover around 10 yuan".

If thus priced, it will be the mainland's biggest IPO this year.

The oil giant has chosen UBS Securities Co, China International Capital Corp and CITIC Securities Co to underwrite the highly anticipated offering, the source said. "We have tentatively set October for the listing."

The Beijing-based company will hold a shareholders' meeting on August 22 to approve its IPO plan, the source said.

But in a statement in June, the company had said its shareholders would vote on the offering on August 10.

The draft prospectus was submitted to the China Securities Regulatory Commission last Friday.

The proceeds from the IPO will fund the company's construction of refinery, petrochemical and gas pipeline projects, overseas acquisition of petroleum and gas resources and the development of its domestic petroleum and gas resources.

PetroChina is the latest State-owned conglomerate listed overseas seeking a mainland listing. China is encouraging its flagship State-owned companies listed in Hong Kong and elsewhere to list on the mainland, which could help soak up excess liquidity and increase the supply of new shares.

PetroChina posted a 3.7 percent production increase in the first half of the year.

The company began trading in Hong Kong and its American Depositary Receipts were also listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 2000.

(China Daily August 8, 2007)