Macquarie Group may renew offer for Qantas

08 May 2007

Mumbai: Macquarie Bank Ltd. and TPG Inc. are likely to renew their A$11.1 billion ($9.1 billion) bid for Qantas Airways Ltd. to keep the world''s biggest airline takeover alive.

Their original bid lapsed after it failed to get the required 50 per cent of acceptances after the deadline passed on 4 May.

The bidders might again offer A$5.45 a share in cash, Sydney-based Macquarie Bank said in a statement.

Shares in Qantas, Australia''s biggest airline, were halted from trading again after closing at A$5.38 on Friday.

The buyout group wants to take control of Qantas as the airline enters its 14th straight year of profit growth. Australia''s takeovers and securities regulators ruled late acceptances for the six-month-old bid were invalid.

While the buyout group argued it might have reached 50 per cent before the offer closed, the Australian takeover panel said it wouldn''t review a decision that disallowed a late acceptance after the 7 p.m. deadline in Sydney.