Keppel unveils mega deals to boost monetisation drive

Keppel on Nov 19 announced two major deals to boost its monetisation drive and elevate its position as a major global asset manager.

- Ven Sreenivasan

One deal is to secure control over 13 legacy rigs held by Rigco Holding, in which Keppel owns a 10 per cent stake. This will be done following a selective capital reduction (SCR) exercise to be completed by Rigco.

Keppel currently holds $139 million in perpetual securities and approximately $4.3 billion in vendor notes issued by Rigco. When the SCR exercise is completed by end-2024, the shares in Rigco not held by Keppel will be cancelled, resulting in Rigco becoming a wholly owned unit of Keppel.

Keppel will have control of $843 million of cash in Rigco as at end-September, which it can utilise to complete the unfinished rigs.

Keppel noted that it has "no intention of re-entering the offshore and marine business".

Instead, chief executive Loh Chin Hua said a successful capital reduction by Rigco would put Keppel in the driver's seat to exert better control of the cash in Rigco and accelerate the monetisation of the rigs.

This will unlock funds that can be used to reduce debt, reinvest for growth and reward shareholders, he said.