Bunge launches $126.7-mn bid for Australia’s Tully Sugar
27 Dec 2010
Global agribusiness and food company and the world's second-largest sugar trader Bunge Limited, is buying Australia's Tully Sugar for $126.7 million in a move that would extend and diversify its global sugar milling operations into Australia.
Tully is an unlisted public company operating one of the largest sugar mills in Australia located at Tully in Far North Queensland. All of Tully Sugar's raw sugar is exported and the bi-product molasses is sold into the domestic and international cattle feed markets.
The Tully mill first opened in 1925 crushing 32075 tonnes of cane. Today about 325 growers supply the mill with more than 2 million tonnes of cane.
The company also owns and operates a number of cane farms, and has commercial and residential real estate interests in Tully.
Under the deal that has the acceptance of Tully's directors, unless a superior offer emerges, Bunge's Singapore-based subsidiary Bunge Agribusiness Singapore Pte Ltd will offer A$41.00 cash per share for Tully in an off-market takeover offer valuing Tully Sugar at around A$126.7 million ($126.7 million).
Bunge said that its offer is conditional on winning acceptance of 50.1 per cent of Tully's shareholders as well as shareholder's approval to lift the company's 20 per cent maximum share cap. Currently, a shareholder of Tully can not own more that 19.9 per cent of the company and it requires the approval of 75 per cent shareholders to lift the cap.
