Asciano says it has resolved a legal dispute involving a trucking associate that had threatened to delay the $9.1 billion ($6.8 billion) buyout led by Qube Logistics, Canada’s Brookfield Asset Management and a group of overseas institutions and investment funds.
Asciano said in a statement that it agreed to give its half stake in Sydney trucking business Australian Container Freight Services Pty Ltd (ACFS) to the family which owned the other half.
The agreement raises the chances of that the massive takeover and then break-up of the road, rail and ports company will actually happen. The deal needs approval from regulators which could come next month.
It did not say whether the transaction involved payment and added that it would also hand over some port leases to the joint venture.
After a protracted bid war and some regulatory setbacks delayed the takeover, the co-owners of ACFS last month asked the NSW Supreme Court to make Asciano confirm its rights under the buyout plan.
The specifics of ACFS’s concerns were not made clear, but Asciano had said it would defend the action, raising the prospect of yet another delay to the deal.
Asciano also said in yesterday’s statement that by handing its stake in the trucking business to its joint venture partners, it would reduce concerns by the competition regulator that the new company might control too many elements of the supply chain.
"The degree of vertical integration following the transaction would be comparable to the current extent of vertical integration and, accordingly, competition concerns would be less likely to arise," Asciano said in the statement.
The competition regulator, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, has raised concerns that the deal might give Asciano’s new owners too much market power in some segments of the country’s logistics industry.
The Commission is expected to give its ruling on July 21.
The deal also requires court approval. A court decision is also expected in July after being postponed from this month.
Asciano shares have failed to trade at the total offer price of $9.28, reflecting investor concern that the deal may not happen. On Monday, the shares were trading steady at $8.86, up a cent. Qube shares fell 1.3% to $2.15.
