BVI Company News

Singapore Petroleum Company Limited (SPC) on July 25 published drilling update on the exploration well in Cambodia, which followed company’s previous announcement made on July 8, 2008. SPC Vice-President Mr Brian Boslaugh commented on the drilling results saying that SPC will continue to work closely with its partners, and to undertake technical works.

The well is located in Cambodia Block B, east of the Khmer sub-basin, in water depth of about 75 metres. SPC holds a 33.3% interest in the Block B through its wholly-owned subsidiary SPC Cambodia Ltd, incorporated in the British Virgin Islands. The BVI company, in its turn, is a wholly-owned subsidiary of SPC Production Company Ltd, which is a wholly-owned subsidiary of SPC. SPC’s share of the drilling costs  in the Block is approximately US$3.0 million, its partners are PTTEP International Limited and Resourceful Petroleum Limited.

SPC is a regional oil and gas company with interests in oil and gas exploration, development and production, marketing and trade. It is an associated company of Keppel Oil & Gas Services Pte Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Keppel Corporation Limited.

A-Power Energy Generation Systems Ltd, power systems firm, announced that it has signed an agreement. According to the deal, a wind turbine production facility will be built by the company with the Chinese city government of Bayan Nur.

According to a British Virging Islands corporation, Bayan Nur (Inner Mongolia) is located in one of the 3 premium wind belts in China, and the Chinese central government has approved 2 100 MW of wind power generation in the Bayan Nur region. A-Power Chief Executive Jinxiang Lu commented the following: “The 800 MW annual wind turbine production capacity at this new Inner Mongolia facility combined with over 1 000 MW from the first phase of our Shenyang production facility will give A-Power an annual wind turbine production capacity of over 1 800 MW by the end of 2009″.

The BVI incorporated A-Power Energy Generation Systems Ltd expects the 290 000 square foot plant to cost around USD 20 million, and the project is planned to be completed in July 2009. The newly built plant will have wind turbines of 2.5 MW and 750 kW capacity.

It is also important that, under the deal, the city government of Bayan Nur agreed to tax breaks as well as to coordinate sales with wind farms in and around the city region.

It is also worth noting that the shares of the BVI-registered company grew more than 3% to USD 29.56 on Nasdaq.

According to Yangtze China Investment Ltd., it has invested USD 5 million in Aesthetic International Holdings Group (BVI) Ltd. in return for a loan convertible into 25% of the share capital of Aesthetic. Aesthetic is the British Virgin Islands holding company for a Beijing-based beauty spa franchise group.

The 15% convertible loan note, which is due in 2011, on a fully diluted basis represents the 25% stake.

A BVI-incorporated company Aesthetic International Holdings Group Ltd. has been set up with a view to facilitate the investment by Yangtze China Investment Ltd. and the subsequent corporate restructuring of the group. The restructuring is to be be implemented after the completion. The group’s restructuring will be completed by Aesthetic with the help of funds invested. In accordance woth Yangtze, the invested funds will also enable the group to raise its profile by means of increased marketing and promotion of brands and products, as well as to expand the research and development team and establish beauty training and franchise management centres.

It should also be noted that this is the 1st investment of Yangtze following its admission to AIM.

Australia’s second-richest man, gaming and media magnate James Packer, whose joint venture with Lawrence Ho Yau-lung is making billions of dollars of investments in Macau, currently is in talks for building a US$1.5 billion casino resort in the Philippines.

The Philippines is one of several Asian countries aiming to take piece of gaming tourism boom in Macau. Last year, legislation was passed in the jurisdiction that allows issuing gaming licences to private firms, and Mr Packer is now revealed as the owner of British Virgin Islands-registered Bloomsbury Investments – one of four private development companies tipped by state company Philippine Amusement & Gaming Corp (Pagcor) to obtain gaming licence for a number of Las Vegas-style mega resorts in Manila Bay. It is worth noting that three of these four firms have ties to Macau.

The BVI company of Mr Packer has already submitted a  US$100 mln deposit towards plans to develop a 1,700-room resort and convention centre complex. Now, since foreign investors could only take control over up to 49% of the Manila Bay projects, Mr Parker is negotiating to secure a local partnership with the Alvarez family, which owns the Columbian Autocar Corp., the largest manufacturer and distributor of autos and buses in the Philippines.

Mr Packer has joint venture partnership with Mr Ho whose Melco International Development formed an exclusive partnership with Crown (formerly Publishing and Broadcasting Ltd) to develop casino projects in the region. Each of these companies has a 37.9% stake in Nasdaq-listed Melco Crown Entertainment (Macau), which operates the US$58 mln Crown Macau on Taipa Island, and builds the US$2.3 billion project called the City of Dreams. However, current Philippine project, initiated by Mr Parker personally, did not involve the joint venture.

Last week Vietnam’s Export Import Commercial Bank (Eximbank) said that it has raised its capital base by 1/3 after ending its share sales to foreign investors. Its registered capital rose 33.3% in the end of May, as it ended selling shares to Sumitomo Mitsui, Japan’s third largest bank.

Eximbank sold 5% of stake to British Virgin Islands-registered VOF Investment Ltd, 4.5% to MAE under South Korea’s top mutual fund Mirae Asset group, and 0.5% to Mirrae Asset Maps Opportunity Vietnam Equity Balanced Fund1.

BVI-registered A-Power Energy Generation Systems, Ltd., providing distributed power generation systems in China, has announced on June 2 that its shares are upgraded to trade on the NASDAQ Global Select Market, under the symbol APWR.

The Chairman and CEO of the BVI company, Jinxiang Lu, noted in his comments that, as the NASDAQ Global Select Market was created for companies that meet the most stringent requirements, this upgrade of A-Power Energy “reflects company’s continued growth and enhanced market value.” He also said they are pleased to have met the financial and liquidity requirements that enable shares to be traded along with NASDAQ’s top companies.

Common stock of A-Power was listed on the NASDAQ Capital Market prior to the upgrade.

Diguang International Development Co., Ltd., manufacturing company located in Shenzhen and having its sales and marketing subsidiary registered in BVI, made an announcement on June 5 that its newly developed LCD-TV LED backlight module received a Design Innovation Award. The award was granted by the conference committee of the China Optoelectronics and Display Exposition (also known as 2008 CODE). One of company’s subsidiaries, Shenzhen Diguang Electronics Co., Ltd., displayed this modules ranging in size from 1 to 42 formats at this trade show, which was held at the Shenzhen Convention and Expo Center in May 23-26, 2008.

Company’s CEO and President, Song Yi in his speech thanked the conference committee for granting this high-level recognition to their technology innovations in television backlights.

On May 28, 2008, Diguang International Development Co., Ltd. announced that its CEO and President, Song Yi, has issued a letter to shareholders, providing updates on company initiatives in Liquid Crystal Modules, new Strategic Business Units, and LED general lighting.

In the letter, Mr. Song Yi expressed company’s sympathy with victims of the massive Sichuan earthquake, and a combined management/employee/company disaster relief contribution. He pointed out that none of Diguang’s facilities were influenced or impaired by the catastrophe. Further on, he outlined the company’s achievements in the first quarter of 2008, including 139% net sales increase, compared to the first quarter of 2007, and formulated strategies to address the challenging environment of the LCD industry which has become highly competitive in the last few years.  Among the strategies outlined by Mr. Song there is creation of a consignment model with the company’s major OEM customers for liquid crystal modules.

Mr. Song also informed in the letter about the success of company’s restructuring into Strategic Business Units (SBUs), each with its own independent responsibility, to achieve more profits. He stated that, in the first quarter of 2008, “all three of operating regions were not only profitable, but better prepared to profitably grow their respective operations”.

He also said that one of the most exciting initiatives of the company resulted in a pilot program “to supply their LED general lighting technology to a 6,000 square meter area in Xiangfan, a city of 6.5 million people and the second largest city in Hubei Province’”. According to Mr. Song, Diguang will have an opportunity to bring its leadership in LED general lighting to many other municipalities and government departments.

Diguang International Development Co., Ltd. is an emerging Chinese leader in the manufacture and supply of CCFL and LED backlights for liquid crustal displays industry, located in Shenzhen and having its sales and marketing subsidiary registered in the British Virgin Islands.

Recently British Virgin Islands company Starbay Holdings Ltd. received an investment license to start up the Dai Beach Resort project in Phu Quoc district, more than US$1.6 billion worth. The license was issued by the Kien Giang People’s Committee at the international conference devoted to tourist real-estate investment opportunities.

The project that will be commenced by the BVI company will include hotels, rest-homes, golf course, villas, department stores and other services.  Construction site will be located on 540ha area of Dai beach, Ganh Dau commune in Phu Quoc.

Mr Martin H.Kaye, General Director of Starbay Holdings Ltd., informed that it took the company four years to receive the license. According to the plan, the project will be completed in five phases until 2020.

The Board of Investments approved grant of incentives to the 14-billion power plant project of Global Business Power Corp. in Toledo (Philippines), the company which is partially owned by George Ty’s Metrobank Group. Power plants will start commercial operations in December 2010, and the project will address the power crisis in the territory by 2010 brought on by rising demand and insufficient power supply.

Global Business Power Corp. is a joint venture between British Virgin Islands-registered ARETA Offshore Ventures Ltd., and Filipino investors. The BVI company owns 50%, 38% are owned by Global Business Holdings Corp., and the remaining 12% stake is owned by Metrobank’s First Metro Investment Corp. The main subsidiaries of Global Business Power are Toledo Power Co., Mirant (Philippines) Island Generation Corp., and Claredon Tower Holdings Inc.