Ultragas share offer is fair

The board of Eitzen Bulk has given a qualified endorsement to a share offer from Ultragas of Chile that values the Copenhagen based company at $125m.

The Eitzen Bulk board however held back from making a recommendation to minority shareholders that they should accept Ultragas’s $5.07336 per share tender offer to minority shareholders.

Just over $5 per share is a "fair" offer.

But only half the six man board effectively issued the opinion.

Three are directors or managers of Ultragas so they declared themselves “unqualified” to make such a statement.

Ultragas, controlled by the Von Appen family, gained control of Eitzen Bulk last month when they acquired a more than 74% shareholding from founder, Axel Eitzen.

Factors that led to the Eitzen directors taking a positive view include the business match between Eitzen Bulk and Ultragas creating opportunities for “a strategic complement” that benefit the company and its customers.

Eitzen directors noted that Ultragas, at least for the time being, had no intention to change the strategy or organisation of the company apart from making a change of name.

Changes to the disadvantage of employees are also not envisaged.

Ultragas has also indicated “no finalised plan” to delist Eitzen Bulk or attempt to forcibly buy out minority interests although this is cautious language and does not rule out such an eventuality.

The Ultragas offer equates to DKK 30.51 per share although Eitzen Bulk is today trading marginally below this at DKK 30.20.

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