Shell's Philippine unit to delay IPO further if market remains volatile

MANILA, March 3 (Reuters) - Royal Dutch Shell Plc (Xetra: R6C1.DE - news) 's Philippine unit said on Thursday it would not hesitate to postpone its planned initial public offering this year if market conditions remain volatile, even if compliance with the listing requirement is long overdue.

"If the market is down, even if we are ready, we will not do it," Shell Philippines Chairman Edgar Chua told reporters on the sidelines of a Shell (LSE: RDSB.L - news) -organised climate change forum in Manila.

Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp, which operates one of the country's two refineries, is required under a near two-decade-old local law to offer at least 10 percent equity to the public.

The company had previously cited unfavourable market conditions and the need to upgrade its local refinery in deferring a share sale. In December it said it had completed the upgrade of the 110,000 barrels per day refinery.

Chua said the goal is still to launch the IPO within the second half of the year and the size could even be bigger than the minimum requirement.

"We are working on the IPO. The only question is, is the market good or bad?," he said.

The good news is Pilipinas Shell made profit last year, he said, rebounding from losses of up to 8.5 billion pesos ($181 million) the year before due mainly to the slump in oil prices.

He declined to disclose a 2015 profit figure, saying the audited financial statement has not yet been released. ($1 = 46.9780 Philippine pesos) (Reporting by Erik dela Cruz, editing by David Evans)