Sugar king Robert Kuok's offer for POSH may not be all that sweet

MINORITY shareholders of loss-making PACC Offshore Services Holdings Ltd (POSH) have recently received a reminder to accept the voluntary conditional cash offer of S$0.215 a share by Quetzal Capital, an investment vehicle linked to Malaysian billionaire and Asian sugar king Robert Kuok.

Quetzal Capital is the bid vehicle formed by certain members of the Kuok Group, namely Kuok (Singapore) Ltd (KSL), Trendfield Inc, a subsidiary of Kuok Brothers Sdn Bhd, and Merry Voyage Ltd, a subsidiary of Kerry Holdings Ltd. POSH describes itself as one of Asia's largest operators of offshore support vessels servicing the offshore oil and gas and renewables industries.

So far, the narrative to convince minorities to part with their shares echo similar privatisation deals in the past - flexibility in managing affairs away from public eye, a loss-making company operating in tough times given challenges in the offshore marine sector, shares are thinly-traded and a chance to offload at an attractive price.