Global Palm Resources chief and family launch privatisation offer at S$0.25 per share

GLOBAL Palm Resources : BLW 0%’ chief executive Suparno Adijanto, along with his six family members, on Wednesday (Mar 29) launched an offer to take the palm oil producer private at S$0.25 per share. 

Through special purpose vehicle ATH Holdings, the Adijanto family is seeking to acquire all of the total issued shares of the company. This will be based on the condition that the offeror, together with its concert parties, garner a minimum acceptance of 50 per cent of voting rights in the company at the close of the offer, excluding any shares held in treasury. 

GPR Investment Holdings – the investment vehicle of certain members of the Adijanto family and the holding company of Global Palm Resources – has irrevocably undertaken to accept the offer for its shares amounting to 206,899,576, or 82.98 per cent of total issued shares in the company, excluding treasury shares. 

It has also undertaken to accept the offer for any other shares which it may acquire, or be allotted and issued to GPR Investment, from the date of its irrevocable undertaking. 

Out of Global Palm Resources’ total share capital comprising 261,639,976 issued shares, 12,300,900 shares are held in treasury. 

Notwithstanding shares held by GPR Investment as well as treasury shares, the offer price implies a cash outlay of S$10.6 million. 

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W Capital Markets has been appointed as the financial adviser for the offer, and has confirmed that there are sufficient financial resources for the offeror to satisfy full acceptance on the basis of the offer price. This excludes the consideration which GPR Investments would have been entitled to receive in turn for tendering its offer shares, in acceptance with the offer. 

The offer price of S$0.25 per share represents a premium of 93.8 per cent over S$0.129, which was the stock’s last traded price on Mar 28 before the company requested a trading halt on the morning of Mar 29. It also represents an 86.6 per cent premium over the volume-weighted average price (VWAP) per share for the one-month period, and a 70.1 per cent premium for the three-month, six-month periods each. 

The offer price stands at a 30.2 per cent premium over the VWAP benchmark for the 12-month period. 

Citing generally-low trading liquidity of the company’s shares, the Adijanto family said that its offer provides Global Palm Resources shareholders an opportunity to liquidate and realise their investment at a premium to prevailing trading prices. 

Delisting the company will provide greater control and management flexibility to improve efficiency and competitiveness, it added, while also allowing the company to “substantially dispense with” the burdens of compliance costs relating to its listing status. 

The Adijanto family added that it does not intend to make major changes to the business of the company, or to its management team and employees. It also does not intend to redeploy fixed assets of the company other than in the normal course of business.