Mining firm OceanaGold Philippines, the wholly owned subsidiary of Canada-headquartered OceanaGold Corporation, has received approval from the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) for its planned initial listing of 2.8 billion common shares worth 7.88 billion Philippine pesos (US$138.36 million) on the PSE’s main board.

In a notice, the PSE says it has approved the miner’s initial public offering (IPO) with a par value of 10 sentimos per share. Once launched, the IPO will be the country’s first of the year and will list on the main board of the PSE under the tracker “OGP”.

“The IPO will have a firm offer of 456,000,000 secondary common shares” the PSE says, “with an offer price of up to 17.28 pesos, subject to a book-building process.”

OceanaGold Philippines operates the Didipio gold and copper mine in Nueva Vizcaya, in the northern Philippines, under the Financial or Technical Assistance Agreement (FTAA). While companies under the FTAA are required to list their common shares on the PSE, OceanaGold Philippines’ offer is beyond the minimum requirement of 10%.

Based on the latest prospectus published on OceanaGold’s website, the offer period will be from April 29 to May 6, and will officially be listed on the PSE on May 13.

The miner has tapped BDO Capital to serve as domestic underwriter and bookrunner for its IPO, while CLSA will serve as international underwriter.

Earlier in 2023, the PSE says it expects at least six companies to complete their IPOs in 2024. In addition to OceanaGold Philippines, Citicore Renewable Energy Corporation is also expected to list on the PSE by the end of May.

If the PSE hits its targets, it will be a boon to the Philippines’ capital market, which, in recent years, has lagged behind its neighbours in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations region.