Eastern Petroleum eyes IPO in 2 years

MANILA, Philippines - Independent oil player Eastern Petroleum Corp. (EPC) plans to undertake an initial public offering (IPO) of its shares in the short term, a top company official said.

“We are thinking of holding it within two years,” EPC chairman Fernando Martinez said, adding that they are currently preparing the necessary documents for the shares offering.

He said the company is ripe for an IPO as it already has a proven track record.

“Last year, we registered a 35 percent increase in sales,” he said.

The stock market, he said, is also performing well. “We are considering it because we want to take advantage of the market,” he said.

EPC is slowly diversifying its business to deal with power and ethanol processing. Earlier, Martinez said they plan to put up a 300-megawatt coal-fired power plant in Bataan. A unit, Eastern Renewables, is also planning to build a $30 million ethanol plant in Isabela.

The proposed ethanol plant will have a capacity of 30 million liters annually or 100,000 liters per day and will start construction by next year, with completion targeted by 2012.

In a span of 12 years since its incorporation in December 1996, EPC has risen among the ranks of the Top 500 corporations in the country as of 2005.

The company has since played an important role in the country’s growth by providing high quality and affordable petroleum products.

EPC has total coverage of retail stations and industrial account capabilities in Luzon and Mindanao, supplying various fuel needs and petroleum products.