Shearman & Sterling and Baker & McKenzie have advised Thai refiner Star Petroleum Refining on its 12.9 billion baht ($365 million) initial public offering, with Davis Polk & Wardwell and Linklaters advising the underwriters, and Latham & Watkins and Weerawong C&P advising the selling shareholder PTT.
Star Petroleum sold 1.92 million shares in the IPO, largely made up from state-run PTT's 36 percent stake. A subsidiary of U.S. firm Chevron Corp remains the majority shareholder, with PTT retaining a stake of 5.4 percent.
PTT had long sought to sell its stake in Star Petroleum amid criticism that it holds a monopoly over all aspects of the energy sector, but the IPO was delayed for years by regulatory snags and disagreements with the Chevron subsidiary, said Reuters.
Star Petroleum operates a 165,000 barrel-per-day refinery in eastern Rayong province and its capacity accounts for 13.2 percent of Thailand's total. It made a net loss of $194 million last year, compared to a $128 million net profit in 2013, as global oil prices fell.
The Shearman & Sterling team was led by Hong Kong partner Matthew Bersani, while the Davis Polk team advising Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Morgan Stanley & Co as international underwriters of the offering was led by partner William F. Barron. The Weerawong C&P team was led by executive partner Peangpanor Boonklum, while the Latham team was led by partners Michael Sturrock and Posit Laohaphan.
