Dubai’s Arabtec Extends $650m Share Offer Period

Dubai builder Arabtec, part-owned by Abu Dhabi state fund Aabar, has extended the subscription period for its $650 million rights share issue, the company said in a statement on Sunday.

The closing date for subscriptions has been extended to July 4 from Sunday, two weeks after its launch on June 9.

Arabtec, builder of Dubai’s famous palm islands, has been on an aggressive push for growth after it replaced its chief executive earlier this year in a shake-up led by Aabar, its largest shareholder, which has been tightening its grip on the group.

The company is selling 1.57 billion new shares at a price of Dhs1.5 a share as part of a five-year expansion plan. The plan includes a further capital increase of $650 million by the end of 2014 if required.

The builder said the extension was requested by shareholders and to give an opportunity to shareholders outside the United Arab Emirates to participate.

However, one source familiar with the matter had said earlier on Sunday that the subscription period was expected to be extended after the entire amount was not taken up by shareholders.

The company has won a series of contracts under the new management this year amounting to Dhs13 billion ($3.5 billion) so far, mainly in the oil-rich emirate of Abu Dhabi where Aabar is based.

Arabtec shares closed down 5.3 per cent at Dhs2.15 on the Dubai bourse on Sunday.

Bank of America Merril Lynch and National Bank of Abu Dhabi are arranging the rights issue, according to International Financing Review (IFR), a unit of Thomson Reuters.