Bharati Shipyard raises Great Offshore offer price to Rs405 cash  

Bharati Shipyard Ltd said it raised its offer price for buying 20% shares in Great Offshore Ltd (GOL) to Rs405 cash from Rs344.

 

In a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange, the company said on 23rd June, its unit Dhanshree Properties Pvt Ltd (DPPL) bought 4.58% stake in GOL at Rs403 per share in a block deal. Laadki Trading & Investment Ltd, Bharat Kanaiyalal Sheth, Ravi Kanaiyalal Sheth, Jyoti B Sheth and Amita Ravi Sheth sold these shares, it added.

As on 8th July, Bharati and its units hold 19.47% and the company want to buy additional 20% shares, which would take its stake in GOL to 39.47%.

 

Incidentally on 23rd June itself, ABG Shipyard Ltd (ABG), the country's largest private shipbuilder had made a counter offer for buying substantial shares in GOL. ABG's unit Eleventh Land Developers Pvt Ltd owns about 2% shares in GOL and the company wants to buy additional 12.6 million shares or 32.12% stake for Rs375 per share.

In June 2007, GOL promoter Vijay Sheth pledged his entire 15.5% stake with IL&FS and Motilal Oswal, who started to seek margin money following a plunge in the value of shares pledged by Sheth. He borrowed the money from Bharati, with whom GOL had placed orders for some vessels.

 

However, in May, Bharati acquired the pledged shares for Rs315 each, calling it a 'strategic investment'. Vijay Sheth, whose stake currently is below 1%, stepped down as vice-chairman and managing director of Great Offshore earlier in June, clearing uncertainties about the GOL's management control.

 

Initially, even Bharati was not interested in making an open offer for GOL, but after it bought the pledged shares; ABG started buying GOL shares from the open market. According to reports, there was some apprehension in Bharati management that perhaps ABG would buy substantial shares from Vijay Sheth's brothers or some institutional investors, which 'forced' Bharati to go for an open offer. -Yogesh Sapkale [email protected]