Deadline extended in £2.9bn battle for shopping centre group Intu
The deadline for a possible offer for shopping centre owner Intu has been extended.
Intu, which owns Manchester’s Arndale and Trafford Centre shopping centres, is the target in a £2.9bn takeover battle by a consortium comprising the Saudi-based Olayan Group, Brookfield Property Group, and Manchester property giant Peel.
Under takeover rules, the consortium has until no later than 5pm tomorrow, November 1, to either announce a firm intention to make an offer for Intu, or announce that it does not intend to make an offer.
This deadline can be extended with the consent of the Panel on Takeovers and Mergers in accordance with Rule 2.6(c) of the Code.
Intu announced this morning: “In response to a request from the consortium to extend the deadline to enable continued discussions, the board of intu requested that the panel extend the deadline referred to above with respect to the consortium, in accordance with Rule 2.6(c) of the Code.
“Accordingly, an extension has been granted by the panel and the consortium must, by no later than 5pm on 15 November 2018, either announce a firm intention to make an offer for intu in accordance with Rule 2.7 of the code, or announce that it does not intend to make an offer, in which case the announcement will be treated as a statement to which Rule 2.8 of the code applies.
“This deadline will only be extended with the consent of the panel.”
It added: “A further announcement will be made when appropriate.
“There can be no certainty that any offer will be made for the company, nor as to the terms on which any offer might be made.”
If the acquisition goes ahead it would create the country’s largest property business. The offer has come just months after property firm Hammerson walked away from similar negotiations.
In a trading statement on October 23, Intu said it was continuing to perform well in the face of the chaos on Britain’s high streets.
Intu chief executive David Fischel said: “intu has continued to deliver a strong and resilient operational performance through a period which has been particularly challenging for UK retailers, demonstrating the clear differentiation between winning destinations such as intu owns and the rest.”
