Spark Infrastructure has rejected a A$4.91bn ($3.64bn) takeover bid launched by a consortium comprising private equity firm KKR and Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board (OTPP).
The revised bid from the consortium offered a price of A$2.80 per share, after Spark Infrastructure rejected the initial proposal, which valued the company at A$2.70 per share.
Spark Infrastructure said that revised proposal is subject to a number of pre-conditions including due diligence, Foreign Investment Review Board approval, a unanimous recommendation by the company’s board and approval of the OTPP Investment Committee and Board and the KKR Infrastructure Investment Committee.
The Australia-based electricity transmission company said that the takeover proposal undervalues the company.
Spark Infrastructure stated: “Following careful consideration, and consultation with its advisers, the Board of Spark Infrastructure again unanimously concluded that the price undervalued Spark Infrastructure.”
However, the company has expressed its willing to provide limited information on its business and its prospects. The engagement is yet to take place and is conditional on the signing of a confidentiality agreement, it said.
Spark Infrastructure has also noted that there is no certainty that the engagement would lead to a revised offer from the consortium.
The company is being advised by Goldman Sachs and Herbert Smith Freehills.
Spark Infrastructure holds a 49% in SA Power Networks, the operator of South Australia’s electricity distribution network. It also has a 49% stake in Victoria Power Networks that owns electricity distributors Citipower and Powercor.
The company’s other investments include a 15% stake in Transgrid, which runs electricity transmission lines in New South Wales, The Australian Financial Review reported.
