(Yicai) Dec. 27 -- Contemporary Amperex Technology said it plans to file for a secondary listing of shares in Hong Kong to finance the Chinese battery titan’s international expansion and boost its competitiveness.

The number of new shares issued in Hong Kong will not exceed 5 percent of CATL's total share capital after the issuance and before the over-allotment option, which is set at up to 15 percent, the Ningde-based company said in an exchange filing late yesterday.

Based on CATL’s 4.403 billion of shares outstanding, Yicai calculates that the maximum number of Hong Kong shares would be about 231.7 million. Using its closing stock price of CNY261.25 (USD35.80) in Shenzhen yesterday, CATL could raise as much as CNY60.5 billion (USD8.3 billion) from the sale, or up to CNY69.6 billion if the greenshoe option is activated.

CATL will fully consider the interests of existing shareholders, capital market conditions, and other factors when pricing of the new shares, the company said, without disclosing how it plans to use the proceeds of the offering.

A special shareholders' meeting is scheduled for Jan. 17 to discuss the Hong Kong listing proposal and the plan for using the funds raised. CATL aims to complete the sale within 18 months from the date of shareholder approval.

CATL’s shares [SHE: 300750] closed 0.3 percent higher at CNY262 (USD35.89) each today. The stock has climbed by more than 60 percent since the end of last year, compared with a 12 percent gain for the benchmark Shenzhen Component Index.

Editor: Martin Kadiev