Dalian Port plans Shanghai initial public offering

HONG KONG Oct 2 (Reuters) - Hong Kong-listed Dalian Port (2880.HK), operator of the port in the northeast China city of Dalian, said it is planning an initial public offering in Shanghai, becoming China's first port with such a dual listing.

The new listing would see the company offer up to 1.2 billion shares, it said in a filing late on Thursday to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.

The deal could worth up to HK$3.83 billion ($494 million) based on the stock's last close of HK$3.19 on Wednesday before the Oct 1 holiday.

"The range for the issue price will be determined based on a preliminary price consultation with selected potential investors," the company said.

"In any event, the issue price will not be less than 90 percent of the average trading price of the H shares during the period of 20 trading days immediately prior to the publication of the preliminary prospectus for the proposed A share issue," it added.

Dalian Port said proceeds from the share offering would be used for investments in its terminal operations and logistics services, to repay bank loans and for working capital.

Other publicly-listed Chinese port operators include China Merchants Holdings (International) Co Ltd (0144.HK), Xiamen International Port Co Ltd (3378.HK) and COSCO Pacific (1199.HK). (Reporting by Doug Young; Editing by Chris Lewis)