As expected, Newco, the Saudi Arabian-led consortium bidding for control of Barloworld, has waived the minimum 90% acceptance condition attached to its R120-a-share offer.
And, in agreement with the independent board of Barloworld, the acceptance date deadline has been extended. This is to ensure that the waiver of the acceptance condition will only become effective once the other standby offer conditions have been fulfilled. This in turn is designed to ensure that shareholders who have committed to accepting the Newco offer will not withdraw their acceptances.
In a Sens statement released on Monday, Barloworld said that Newco had received acceptances from approximately 34.4% of shareholders. “This, together with the consortium’s and the Barloworld Foundation’s existing shareholdings, equates to 57.7% of the Barloworld ordinary shares in issue,” said the statement.
The Public Investment Corporation, with a 21.9%, comprises the largest portion of the 34.4% acceptance.
It now appears that Newco is happy to continue with the transaction, even if it holds only 51% of Barloworld. Whether or not it will be allowed to hold this controlling stake will be determined by the Competition Tribunal, which has scheduled a follow-up hearing into the transaction for Wednesday.
Barloworld has also confirmed that the recent interim dividend of R1.20 a share will be deducted from the R120-a-share offer.
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