JX Energy (HKG:3395) said it will issue 210 million new shares at HK$0.30 each to settle debt owed to its chairman, Yongtan Liu, according to a Monday Hong Kong bourse filing.

The shareholder loan of about HK$21.3 million will be settled in full, while about HK$41.7 million of outstanding debt will be converted into shares.

The share issue, subject to shareholder approval under a specific mandate, aims to reduce gearing and strengthen the balance sheet without using internal cash resources, according to the filing.

Shares of the firm were up nearly 2% in Monday morning trade.