Tussle for Horizon Energy erupts back to life

Monday 14th June 2010

Marlborough Lines Ltd is standing in the market this morning up to 10.1% of the shares of Whakatane-based Horizon Energy.

Pitched at $4.15 a share, the bid is the third minority shareholders in the NZX-listed electricity network company have received in the past 12 months. Horizon shares jumped 23% to the offer price when trading opened this morning, on news from First NZ Capital Securities Ltd. that it was actioning the Marlborough Lines instruction.

In January, the Eastern Bay Energy Trust offered $4.10 a share for the 21.7% of Horizon that it does not already own, topping the $3.96 offered in a failed bid by Marlborough Lines to acquire 51% of Horizon in September last year.

That counter-bid was blocked by an injunction granted to a Bay of Plenty Maori trust which challenged the quality of disclosure in takeover documents from EBET.

A Takeovers Panel inquiry found last month that Horizon directors had made one breach the Takeovers Code of three possible breaches investigated relating to the original Marlborough bid, which gave a valuation range for Horizon of $3.96 to $4.68.

Businesswire.co.nz

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