CMA CGM S.A. today announces that its all-cash voluntary unconditional general offer (Offer) for Neptune Orient Lines Limited (NOL) closed at 5.30 p.m. (Singapore time) on July 18, 2016. CMA CGM now owns 2,547,264,348 NOL shares, representing approximately 97.83% of NOL’s share capital.
Accordingly, the Offer is no longer open for acceptance. Any acceptances received after 5.30 p.m. (Singapore time) on July 18, 2016 will be rejected.
With the public float of NOL shares below the minimum threshold of 10%, the Singapore Exchange Securities Trading Limited (SGX-ST) will suspend the trading of NOL shares and CMA CGM does not intend to take any steps for the suspension to be lifted.
As announced on June 28, 2016, CMA CGM has crossed the compulsory acquisition ownership threshold in NOL and confirms that it intends to exercise its rights to compulsorily acquire all the NOL shares held by NOL shareholders who have not accepted the Offer, in accordance with the Companies Act (Chapter 50 of Singapore).
CMA CGM will compulsorily acquire all remaining NOL shares at a price equal to the Offer Price of SGD1.30 as soon as practicable. Payment for NOL shares that are compulsorily acquired will be made in cash within 7 business days after the completion of the compulsory acquisition exercise, which is expected to take at least one month from its commencement.
Further information on the compulsory acquisition process will be announced and relevant documentation will be despatched to NOL shareholders in due course.
Following the completion of the compulsory acquisition exercise, NOL will become a wholly owned subsidiary of CMA CGM. CMA CGM intends to delist NOL from the SGX-ST thereafter.
About the CMA CGM Group
CMA CGM, founded and led by Jacques R. Saadé, is a leading worldwide shipping group. Its 450 vessels call at more than 400 ports in the world, across all 5 continents. In 2015, they carried 13 million TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units). CMA CGM has grown continuously, and has been constantly innovating to offer its clients new sea, land and logistics solutions. With a presence in 163 countries, through its 426 agencies, the Group employs 22,000 people worldwide, including 2,400 at its headquarters in Marseille.
About NOL
Headquartered in Singapore, NOL is the largest shipping company listed on the Singapore Exchange. Its container shipping arm, APL, provides world-class container shipping and terminal services, as well as intermodal operations supported by leading-edge IT and e-commerce. APL offers transcontinental cargo shipping across Asia, North and South America, Europe, the Middle East, the Indian subcontinent and Australia through more than 80 weekly services calling at 160 ports worldwide.