Euronav second shareholder Compagnie Maritime Belge (CMB) is providing to amass Frontline’s 26.12% stake within the firm for $18.43 per share, which shall be adopted by a compulsory public supply on the similar worth, the Belgian oil tanker and storage operator stated on Thursday.
Shares of Euronav, which have been suspended earlier within the day after spiking on media studies concerning the firm going non-public, jumped round 18% as buying and selling reopened at 1330 GMT.
The completion of the deal would finish the arbitration motion began by Euronav in opposition to its peer Frontline, of which Norwegian-born transport tycoon John Fredriksen is almost all shareholder, in response to the latter’s choice in January to scrap a $4.2 billion deliberate merger between each firms.
The merger would have created the world’s largest publicly listed tanker firm.
The 26.12% stake on the market in Euronav additionally consists of Frontline-aligned Famatown, which Fredriksen additionally owns.
Antwerp-based CMB, which presently owns with its associates 22.93% of Euronav shares, opposed the merger with Frontline as quickly because the discussions have been introduced.
The proposed transaction would additionally contain Frontline buying 24 VLCC tankers from the Euronav fleet for $2.35 billion, Euronav stated in an announcement.
Frontline additionally confirmed on Thursday discussions with CMB and Euronav, whereas CMB responded to a Reuters e mail that it could talk on the matter, with out specifying when.
“The discussions between the parties are well advanced. However, there can be no certainty that these discussions will lead to an agreement,” Euronav stated.
($1 = 0.9498 euros)
(Reuters – Reporting by Victor Goury-Laffont and Diana Mandiá; Editing by Alexandra Hudson, William Maclean)
