China Sichuan Expressway sets A-share price range

SHANGHAI, July 14 (Reuters) - China's Sichuan Expressway Co (0107.HK) has fixed a price range for its yuan-denominated A shares at a premium to Hong Kong-listed H shares, looking to raise as much as 1.8 billion yuan ($264 million) in its Shanghai initial public offering (IPO), it said on Tuesday.

The toll road operator has priced its 500 million A shares, or 16.35 percent of its expanded share capital after the IPO, in the 3.25-3.6 yuan per share range, it said in a filing to the Shanghai Stock Exchange.

The prices imply a premium of 12.3 percent to 20.8 percent on its H shares' closing price on Monday of HK$3.23, after exchange rate adjustments.

Mainland-listed A shares of dual-listed Chinese firms often enjoy huge premiums over their Hong Kong-listed counterparts, partly due to a lack of investment channels in the mainland.

The average premium of domestically listed A shares over Hong Kong-listed shares in the same firms .HSCAHPI was at 47 percent at the close on Monday, while the premium of a comparable company, Shenzhen Expressway (600548.SS)(0548.HK), stood at 90 percent.

Sichuan Expressway said the A-share prices represented 18 to 20 times its 2008 earnings on a fully diluted base after the IPO.

It said 30 percent of the A share offer would be earmarked for institutions and the rest for retail investors. The ratio may be shifted in favour of the retail tranche if demand proves strong.

The company will take institutional subscriptions on Tuesday and retail subscriptions Wednesday. Money will be returned to unsuccessful applicants on Friday for institutional investors and on Monday for retail investors, it said. ($1=6.83 Yuan) (Reporting by Lu Jianxin and Eric Burroughs; Editing by Jonathan Hopfner)