Construction major Vinaconex acquires 98% stake in state-controlled Viwaseen

Vietnam’s leading construction firm Vinaconex (HoSE: VCG) has completed the acquisition of a 98.16% stake in water supply infrastructure firm Viwaseen Corporation.

The transaction was done on Tuesday, officially making Viwaseen (UpCoM: VIW) a subsidiary of Vinaconex.

The move follows an earlier announcement by state investment arm SCIC, which plans to auction the entire VIW stake, or 56.49 million shares, on October 20 at a starting price of VND21,620 ($0.82) per share. VIW shares closed Tuesday at VND14,000 ($0.53) each.

The stake purchase is deemed a strategic move for Vinaconex to expand its ecosystem and water – environment infrastructure capacity.

Vinaconex also appointed Nguyen Quynh Trang, deputy director, as Viwaseen general director, succeeding Ngo Van Dung. VCG shares were traded at VND22,700 ($0.86) each on mid-Wednesday.

Founded in 1975 as a state-owned entity, Viwaseen operates in construction, water supply infrastructure, and real estate. The company earned VND1 billion ($37,930) in net profit on revenue of VND948 billion ($35.96 million) in 2020, and only returned to stable profitability of VND14-15 billion ($531,010-568,940) annually in the past two years after a loss in 2022.

Notably, Viwaseen also owns a host of “golden land” lots in major cities, including seven prime land plots in Hanoi and the neighboring city of Hai Phong.

In Hanoi, these include a 10,270 sqm site in Thanh Tri district, an 8,209 sqm parcel in Dai Mo ward, and a 12,556 sqm plot in Khuong Dinh ward.

A standout asset is a 1,282 sqm “golden lot” in downtown Hanoi. In Hai Phong, Viwaseen owns the 1.9-hectare Vong Hai residential area and several industrial land plots in the Dinh Vu zone.