Yinson Production, the offshore unit of Malaysia's Yinson Holdings, plans to expand into Namibia and is considering an initial public offering within three to five years, its CEO said on Tuesday.
The company, which in January received a $1 billion investment from global funds, leases and operates floating production and storage offloading units for energy firms, targeting projects in Brazil, West Africa and Southeast Asia.
"Namibia is one of the new markets. It's maturing as we speak," CEO Flemming Gronnegaard said.
He said oil companies are drilling and working with regulators in Namibia, and Yinson expects the southern African country to produce its first oil before 2030, which would allow contracts for its units to be placed by 2027.
Yinson plans to start an office in Namibia in January to start training local crew, Gronnegaard said.
The company is evaluating about 20 projects and expects to sign new contracts within 12 to 18 months, he said.
Projects it is bidding for include replacing a unit at PTTEP's Kikeh deepwater field in Malaysia and TotalEnergies' Unity FSO in Nigeria, he added.
Yinson Production's $1 billion funding round in January included investments in redeemable convertible preferred shares from the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority and British Columbia Investment Management.
Gronnegaard said an IPO is among options being considered after the company completes its current capital expenditure cycle.
"The choice of option will depend on, for instance... the market sentiment and the valuation we will be able to command," he added.
(Reuters)