Nicaragua Canal Developer Plans IPO

The Hong Kong-based company with a concession to build a $50 billion shipping canal in Nicaragua said on Tuesday it is preparing to launch an initial public offering.

Wang Jing, Chairman and Chief Executive of the HK Nicaragua Canal Development Investment Co Ltd (HKND Group), told reporters in Managua that he hoped the listing would take place in the stock market that offered the best conditions.

Wang Jing gave no details of how much HKND aimed to raise, nor when the offering might be. He said the company was preparing a prospectus which would reveal the investors behind the waterway that seeks to compete with the Panama Canal.

More than a year since it was first announced, the canal project faces widespread skepticism, with questions still open about who will provide financing, how seriously it will affect Lake Nicaragua and how much land will be expropriated for it.

Reporting by Gabriel Stargardter