PetroVietnam Gas Corporation (PV Gas) on November 17 sold 60.97 million shares worth 1.89 trillion VND at the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HOSE), falling short of plans to sell a 5 percent stake.

The price matched the starting price PV Gas had announced in advance but volume was much lower than the nearly 95 million shares it had planned to auction in the initial public offering (IPO), raising the company about 97 million USD.

The HOSE said in a statement that the highest bidding price was 55,000 VND and the lowest was 31,000 VND.

This was the biggest-ever IPO in Vietnam as up to 27 securities companies had registered as auction agencies at 82 sites across the country.

PV Gas, a subsidiary of the Vietnam National Oil and Gas Group, said it is planning to ask for permission to sell more stakes to strategic investors as they registered to buy more than the level of 15 percent previously approved by the government.

It is a company with the largest chartered capital, at 18.95 trillion VND, that has undergone equitisation. Its shares will be listed on HOSE in the first quarter of 2011./.