SINGAPORE - In what could be a precursor to a major corporate event, shares of Sembcorp Marine (Sembmarine) leapt to its highest level since mid-2021 on heavy volumes.

The stock of the offshore and marine (O& M) player rose 14.3 per cent, or 1.2 cents, to a high of 9.6 cents, before closing at 9.4 cents, up 11.9 per cent.

Some 457.3 million shares changed hands, making it the most heavily traded stock by volume.

Sembmarine' s surge was in tandem with  a spike in the prices of other energy and commodity stocks  on the bourse in the wake of soaring oil and commodity prices following Russia' s invasion of Ukraine.

But brokers speculated that the rise could be happening ahead of a potential merger of Sembmarine with Keppel Corp' s O& M business.

Keppel has hinted that it could offload its troubled O& M business by the end of this quarter.

Sembmarine has had a tough last eight years amid a slumping oil market, and has gone through two major fund-raising exercises which has pulled its stock price down to a fraction of its highs of more than $2 over a decade ago.

Although the company reported losses recently, some analysts reckon the worst could be over for the company as it diversifies into the renewable energy market, while also maintaining a toehold in the traditional ship repair and O& M sector.

CIMB-CGS analyst Lim Siew Khee recently tagged a " hold" on the stock with a 9 cent target price, citing improving operational fundamentals and narrowing losses.

She said the worst could be over for Sembmarine with easing labour shortages, more projects due for delivery and an improving order outlook