Less than 18 months after being bought by private investors, Emeco, a Perth, Australia-based international earth-moving sales and rental company is preparing for a Au$1 billion (about U.S. $728 million) listing on the Australian stock exchange. Emeco shareholders plan to issue a prospectus in the second half of 2006.

The company last week appointed Credit Suisse, Citigroup and UBS as joint lead managers of the initial public offering. The company has net assets of about U.S. $160 million, according to Australian press reports, with an annual net profit of almost $15 million. Emeco is primarily owned by Archer Capital and Pacific Equity Partners.

Emeco made a significant entry into the North American equipment rental market with the August 2005 acquisition of Edmonton, Alberta-based River Valley Equipment, No. 91 on the RER 100, for $36.4 million. “We have penetrated the rental equipment servicing market in the huge oil sands operations in Alberta, Canada,” said managing director Laurie Freedman.

Emeco operates in Australia, Indonesia, Europe and the United States, with U.S. headquarters in Houston. The company has done particularly well in recent years renting heavy equipment to Australia’s mining industry. Emeco has U.S. branches in Houston and Atlanta.

In its latest earnings statement, Emeco announced a 12.9-percent increase in revenue for the six months period ended Dec. 31, 2005. The company totaled Au$ 72.4 million in rental revenue for the six-month period, about U.S. $53 million according to current exchange rates.