CHINA Railway Construction Corp. (CRCC) plans to privately place shares to raise as much as 9.9 billion yuan (US$1.6 billion) to invest in domestic rail and tram projects, it said in a prospectus yesterday.

    The railway builder will issue up to 1.38 billion yuan-denominated Shanghai-listed A shares to as many as 10 investors at 7.20 yuan per share, it said.

    That’s 26.5 percent less than the last closing price of 9.79 yuan in Shanghai, before trading was suspended Dec. 9. Shares resumed trading yesterday and they surged their 10 percent daily limit-up at 10.77 yuan.

    China is stepping up infrastructure spending to support a slowing economy and Monday its economic planner approved US$31 billion in new construction projects. It has also signed off on at least three railway investments in December.

    CRCC said it intends to invest the placement’s proceeds in rail projects in the southwestern Chinese cities of Chongqing and Chengdu. It will also use the funds to repay bank loans and replenish working capital.

    The company, which, with its rival China Railway Group, has built the bulk of the country’s vast train network, is also leading China’s push to win projects abroad. It recently won a US$12 billion Nigerian railway deal and led a consortium that was the sole bidder for a US$3.75 billion Mexican high-speed rail contract.

    China is targeting emerging markets such as Africa, Eastern Europe, Latin America and Southeast Asia for rail projects. Premier Li Keqiang has touted the country’s rail equipment engineering and construction companies on overseas trips and signed deals. (SD-Agencies)