The Paris Court of Appeal on Tuesday rejected an appeal filed by EDF’s minority shareholders against the green light from the Financial Markets Authority (AMF) to the French State’s takeover bid for the group’s securities. This decision paves the way for the completion of the operation desired by the government, the Ministry of Economy and Finance announced on Tuesday in a press release.
The worker shareholders of the group and the Association for the Defense of Minority Shareholders (Adam) opposed the conditions for the total renationalization of EDF, in particular, challenging the price of 12 euros per share proposed by the State, considered too low.
The French state had indicated in January that it would not complete the procedure for the full renationalization of EDF before the courts ruled on this appeal. Announced last July, the renationalisation, of some 9.7 billion euros, should allow the Government to direct the vast renovation project of the French nuclear park with greater freedom, announced a year ago by Emmanuel Macron.
Offer reopened from Thursday
The Ministry of Economy specifies that the simplified takeover bid initiated by the State will be reopened from May 4 to 17, inclusive, under the same financial conditions. These two weeks will allow “the shareholders and owners of OCEÁNES (Editor’s Note: Convertible Bonds Exchangeable for New or Existing Shares) that have not yet submitted their shares and/or their OCEANEs to the offer to do so at a price of 12.00 euros per EDF share and 15.52 euros per OCEANE.”
Bercy adds that the State will request the implementation of the mandatory withdrawal at the end of this reopening period that will meet all the conditions. Indeed, at the provisional closing of the offer on February 3, the State already owned 95.82% of the capital and at least 96.53% of the voting rights of EDF and practically all (99.96%) of the issue of OCEANE in circulation.
Source: BFM TV
