WH Group Ltd is seeking to raise up to US$3 billion from this month in a revived Hong Kong IPO, Thomson Reuters publication IFR reported.

The offer would be the second attempt this year by the world's largest pork company to go public, as it seeks funds to repay part of the debt from last year's US$7.1 billion buyout of United States pork producer Smithfield International.

In April, WH Group shelved a Hong Kong IPO it had hoped would raise up to US$5.3 billion after investors resisted the high valuation. The record number of 29 banks hired to manage the offer had sent confusing signals to institutional investors, while the negative publicity surrounding excessive executive compensation raised corporate governance issues.

The new IPO would be made up of only primary shares, meaning existing shareholders including CDH Investments, New Horizon, Goldman Sachs and Temasek Holdings would not sell their stakes. Following the IPO, public shareholders would own about 20%.