Surgical Cut

Asiri Medical Services, a unit of Asiri Hospitals Ltd.

, plans to list its stock next year to settle some debt.







Asiri Medical Services, a unit of Asiri Hospitals Ltd., plans to list its stock next year to settle some debt. The 14 storey Asiri Medical Service (AMS) cost the group around Rs. 1.0 bn and was financed partly through debt. The building is believed to have cost around Rs.



600 mn, while the balance was spent to acquire modern equipment, like a 16-slice CT scanner.

AMS's entry with 100 beds raises Asiri Group's bed capacity to 220.

Asiri has also shifted its surgical and oncology units to AMS.

With AMS coming on board, Asiri's finance cost rose 173 percent to Rs. 17.8 mn, says HNB Stockbrokers.

"Asiri is hoping to list AMS sometime next year, with the proceeds used to settle debt. With borrowings coming down, Asiri's finance costs will reduce substantially towards the latter part of next year," explains Hasitha Premaratne, Research Manager HNB Stockbrokers.

He says, AMS has an occupancy level of around seventy to eighty percent.

The BOI approved AMS, is entitled to a 10-year tax break f