CMA CGM Acquisition NOL: Aprroval Expected by Mid-2016

 

NOL group president and chief executive Ng Yat Chung said NOL, which is being bought out by French shipping giant CMA CGM for $2.4bn, has made all necessary anti-trust filings.

 

"So far, we've not encountered any difficulty and we continue to expect that the approvals will come sometime in the middle of 2016."

 

On 7 December 2015, CMA CGM S.A. announced a pre-conditional voluntary cash offer to acquire NOL at SGD1.30 per NOL share. The offer was subject to anti-trust clearances from the European Union, China and the US. 

 

According to Ng, the $2.4bn acquisition was still expected to be approved by the relevant regulatory bodies by mid-2016, when CMA CGM is due to make a formal voluntary general conditional offer for the remaining shares in NOL and subsequently delist its acquisition target.

 

CMA CGM has so built up a 3.74% stake in NOL in open market share purchases at below its offer price of SGD1.30 per share.

 

Rodolph Saadé, vice chairman of CMA CGM, said that he expects the $2.4bn deal to take over NOL to get all the necessary regulatory approvals from various countries by this summer.

 

Meanwhile,  OCBC has urged shareholders to accept CMA CGM’s offer of $1.30 for each share of NOL given that the container shipper has suffered three straight years of losses outlook for the industry still staying tough.