AustralianSuper blasts Brookfield’s ‘low-ball’ Origin offer
AustralianSuper has blasted attempts by Brookfield to “buy more time” on its $18.7 billion bid for Origin Energy, describing an alternative deal asa “low-ball offer” that would shortchange investors in favour of a private equity consortium.
The $300 billion superannuation fund, which has 3.2 million members and owns about 17 per cent of Origin Energy, said it would reject a revised proposal for the ASX-listed generator and retailer from Brookfield and a consortium backed by US investment group EIG Global Energy Partners.
By lodginga revised offer on Wednesday night, less than 24 hours before shareholders were due to vote on the existing takeover plan at 2pm on Thursday, Brookfield put the board under pressure to delay the vote while it considers the new proposal – and bought itself more time to lobby investors.
Origin CEO Frank Calabria and chairman Scott Perkins told investors on Thursday they need time to consider a revised proposal from the Brookfield consortium. Louie Douvis
Origin confirmed that if a vote on the existing takeover bid, which required at least 75 per cent of votes cast to be in favour, had been held on Thursday it would have been unlikely to succeed – mostly due to AustralianSuper’s plans to vote against it.
But with the shareholder vote now postponed until December 4, both Brookfield and Origin have almost two weeks to try to woo investors to accept the existing takeover plan.
Another major shareholder, Perpetual, estimated to hold between 2 per cent and 3 per cent of Origin, has also raised concerns that the existing takeover proposal price is too low. Perpetual declined to comment on Thursday.
As first revealed by The Australian Financial Review on Thursday morning, the revised proposal from Origin
Read more on afr.com
