BANGKOK, Feb 21 (Reuters) - Thai oil and gas company PTT Pcl said on Tuesday it would increase its stake in oil refiner IRPC Pcl, purchasing all the shares held by state-run lender Government Savings Bank for 13.85 billion baht ($439.26 million). PTT said it would acquire the bank’s 9.54 percent stake, bringing the oil giant’s total holdings in IRPC to 45.05 percent. PTT and the Government Savings Bank are controlled by the Thai government. Shares of PTT rose about 6 percent, while IRPC stock gained about 2 percent. The acquisition comes after PTT reported a 43 percent increase in annual profit, driven in part by IRPC’s strong performance. IRPC reported last week a 16 percent rise in annual profit to 11.35 billion baht. PTT also unveiled a 1-to-10 stock split plan on Tuesday, bringing the par value of a share to 1 baht from 10 baht. $1 = 31.5300 baht Reporting by Chayut Setboonsarng; Editing by Amrutha Gayathri
State-owned oil and gas firm PTT will acquire a 9.54% stake in oil refiner IRPC, owned by Thailand's Government Savings Bank, for THB13.85bn ($439.26m). The purchase will increase PTT's holdings in IRPC to 45.05%, while a strong performance from the latter firm helped boost PTT's last week profits by 43%. Shares in PTT rose about 6% following the announcement of the acquisition.