HONG KONG (Reuters) - China Vanke (HK:2202), the mainland's biggest property company by sales, said it will submit details of a proposed $9.3 billion (6.55 billion pounds) restructuring involving subway operator Shenzhen Metro Group to the stock exchange this week, and expects to resume trading by early July.
Vanke's shares were suspended on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange in December and it announced the deal with Shenzhen Metro in March as its management fought to retain control of the company in a battle with its major shareholder, financial conglomerate Baoneng.
Vanke company secretary Sunny Zhu told local media on Sunday the company planned to submit the restructuring details to the Shenzhen exchange before June 18. It expected its shares to resume trading by early July as it understood the bourse would take 10 days at most to review the details. Vanke confirmed the comment on Monday.
Under the proposal, Vanke would acquire Shenzhen Metro's property projects, mostly atop subway stations in the booming tier-one city. Vanke would fund the deal by issuing up to 60 billion yuan (6.42 billion pounds) of new shares to the subway operator, which would become its biggest investor.
Zhu was speaking as Vanke and Shenzhen Metro signed a memorandum of understanding to deepen cooperation on a rail network development.
The two companies also signed agreements with Dongguan Industrial Investment Holding Group, Chongqing City Transportation Development & Investment Group Co and China Metro Group to duplicate the "railway plus property" model in cities outside the southern city of Shenzhen.
Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) said Shenzhen Metro's target to extend the length of its metro lines to 1,000 km (621 miles)from the current 158 km, suggested a huge opportunity for property development for the two firms.
"We think the collaboration with Shenzhen Metro, if successful, would provide Vanke with a new acquisition channel of land in a prime location at a lower price than the public auction market, due to more limited competition," Morgan Stanley said in a research note on Monday.
The restructuring plan would require approval by at least two thirds of Vanke's shareholders, it added.
Vanke's shares have continued to trade in Hong Kong. The stock fell 3.4 percent on Monday, underperforming a 2.8 percent decline in the broader market (HSI).