National Storage Mechanism | Additional information
RNS Number : 2178W
Go-Ahead Group PLC
16 August 2022
 

NOT FOR RELEASE, PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION, IN WHOLE OR IN PART, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, IN, INTO OR FROM ANY JURISDICTION WHERE TO DO SO WOULD CONSTITUTE A VIOLATION OF THE RELEVANT LAWS OR REGULATIONS OF SUCH JURISDICTION

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

16 August 2022

 

RECOMMENDED CASH ACQUISITION

of

THE GO-AHEAD GROUP PLC ("GO-AHEAD")
by

GERRARD INVESTMENT BIDCO LIMITED ("BIDCO")
a newly formed company indirectly owned by Kinetic TCo Pty Ltd and Globalvia Inversiones S.A.U.

to be effected by means of a scheme of arrangement

RESULTS OF COURT MEETING AND GENERAL MEETING

Go-Ahead is pleased to announce that, at the Court Meeting and the General Meeting held earlier today in connection with the recommended cash offer by Bidco for the entire issued and to be issued share capital of Go-Ahead (the "Offer") to be effected by means of a scheme of arrangement under Part 26 of the Companies Act 2006 (the "Scheme"), all the resolutions proposed were duly passed.

Full details of the resolutions passed are set out in the notices of the Court Meeting and General Meeting contained in the scheme document dated 11 July 2022 (the "Scheme Document"), which, subject to certain restrictions relating to persons resident in Restricted Jurisdictions, is available on Go-Ahead's website at https://www.go-ahead.com/investors and Bidco's website at https://www.gerrardbid.com/.

VOTING RESULTS OF THE COURT MEETING

The Scheme was approved by the requisite majority on a poll vote at the Court Meeting held at 12.00 p.m. on 16 August 2022. A majority in number of the Scheme Shareholders who voted (and who were entitled to vote), either in person or by proxy, representing over 75 per cent. in value of the Scheme Shares held by such Scheme Shareholders present and voting, voted to approve the Scheme.

The results of the poll at the Court Meeting held on 16 August 2022 were as follows:

 


Number of Scheme Shares voted

Percentage of Scheme Shares voted

Number of Scheme Shareholders who voted

Percentage of Scheme Shareholders who voted

Number of Scheme Shares voted as a percentage of issued ordinary share capital entitled to vote on the Scheme #

For

22,901,951

78.60%

613

78.59%

53.04%

Against

6,235,907

21.40%

167

21.41%

14.44%

Total

29,137,858

100%

780

100%

67.48%

# The total number of Scheme Shares in issue at the Scheme Voting Record Time was 43,177,390.

VOTING RESULTS OF THE GENERAL MEETING

The special resolution to provide for the implementation of the Scheme was passed by the requisite majority on a poll vote at the General Meeting held at 12.15 p.m. on 16 August 2022.

The results of the poll at the General Meeting held on 16 August 2022 were as follows:

VOTES
FOR

%

VOTES
AGAINST

%

TOTAL VOTES
CAST*

% OF ISSUED SHARE CAPITAL VOTED

VOTES
WITHHELD

22,712,715

78.53%

6,211,436

21.47%

28,924,151

66.99%

6,763

* Excludes votes withheld

Completion of the Offer remains subject to the satisfaction or, if applicable, waiver of the other Conditions set out in the Scheme Document, including the Court sanctioning the Scheme at the Court Hearing which is expected to take place in October 2022.

A copy of the special resolution passed at the General Meeting will be submitted to the National Storage Mechanism and will be available for inspection at https://data.fca.org.uk/#/nsm/nationalstoragemechanism.

Capitalised terms used in this announcement (unless otherwise defined) have the same meanings as set out in the Scheme Document.

 

 

Enquiries

Go-Ahead


Investor Enquiries

Christian Schreyer

Sarah Mussenden

 

+44 20 7799 8971

Media Enquiries

Andrew Clark

 

+44 7977 343846

Rothschild & Co (Lead Financial Adviser to Go-Ahead)

+44 20 7280 5000

John Deans

Sabina Pennings

 


Investec (Financial Adviser and Joint Corporate Broker to Go-Ahead)

+44 20 7597 4000

James Rudd

Ben Griffiths

 


Peel Hunt (Financial Adviser and Joint Corporate Broker to Go-Ahead)

+44 20 7418 8900

Harry Nicholas

Charles Batten

John Welch


Citigate Dewe Rogerson (PR Adviser to Go-Ahead)


Lorna Cobbett (media)

Holly Gillis (investors)

 

+44 7771 344781

+44 7940 797560

Kinetic


Investor Enquiries

+61 3 9492 2200

Barrett Gibson

Michael Sewards

Mackayla Hanney

Daniel Lewis

 


Media Enquiries

+61 3 9492 2200

Barrett Gibson

 


Globalvia


Investor / Media Enquiries

+34 91 456 5850

Belen Castro

Maria Porta

 


UBS (Lead Financial Adviser to Bidco and the Consortium)

+44 20 7567 8000

Jonathan Rowley

Arnould Fremy

Sandip Dhillon

Thomas Raynsford

Nick Alexander

 


Santander Corporate & Investment Banking (Financial adviser to Bidco and the Consortium)

+44 20 4536 9490

Ting Le Deng

Daryna Radionova

Kirill Ivanov

 


Tulchan Communications (PR Adviser to Bidco and the Consortium)

+44 20 7353 4200

Olivia Peters

Giles Kernick

 


 

Herbert Smith Freehills LLP is retained as legal adviser to Go-Ahead. Linklaters LLP is retained as legal adviser to the Consortium and Bidco.

 

Important notice

This Announcement is for information purposes only and is not intended to and does not and is not intended to constitute or form part of any offer or invitation to purchase, otherwise acquire, subscribe for, sell or otherwise dispose of, any securities or the solicitation of any vote or approval in relation to the Acquisition or the Scheme or otherwise, in any jurisdiction in which such offer, invitation or solicitation is unlawful.

Unless otherwise determined by Bidco or required by the Code, and permitted by applicable law and regulation, the Acquisition shall not be made available, directly or indirectly, in, into or from a Restricted Jurisdiction where to do so would violate the laws in that jurisdiction and no person may vote in favour of the Acquisition by any such use, means, instrumentality or form within a Restricted Jurisdiction or any other jurisdiction if to do so would constitute a violation of the laws of that jurisdiction. Accordingly, copies of this announcement and all documents relating to the Acquisition are not being, and must not be, directly or indirectly, mailed or otherwise forwarded, distributed or sent in, into or from a Restricted Jurisdiction where to do so would violate the laws in that jurisdiction, and persons receiving this announcement and all documents relating to the Acquisition(including custodians, nominees and trustees) must not mail or otherwise distribute or send them in, into or from such jurisdictions where to do so would violate the laws in that jurisdiction.

The availability of the Acquisition to Go-Ahead Shareholders who are not resident in the United Kingdom may be affected by the laws of the relevant jurisdictions in which they are resident. Persons who are not resident in the United Kingdom should inform themselves of, and observe, any applicable requirements.

The Acquisition shall be subject to the applicable requirements of the Code, the Panel, the London Stock Exchange and the Financial Conduct Authority.

The Acquisition shall be implemented solely pursuant to the terms of the Scheme Document which, together with the Forms of Proxy, contains the full terms and conditions of the Acquisition, including details of how to vote in respect of the Acquisition.

This announcement has been prepared for the purpose of complying with English and Welsh law and the Code and the information disclosed may not be the same as that which would have been disclosed if this announcement had been prepared in accordance with the laws of jurisdictions outside England and Wales.

This announcement does not constitute a prospectus or prospectus exempted document.

This announcement contains inside information in relation to Go-Ahead for the purposes of Article 7 of the Market Abuse Regulation.

Disclaimers

N.M. Rothschild & Sons Limited ("Rothschild & Co"), which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority in the United Kingdom, is acting exclusively for Go-Ahead and for no one else in connection with the subject matter of this announcement and will not be responsible to anyone other than Go-Ahead for providing the protections afforded to its clients or for providing advice in connection with the subject matter of this announcement. Neither Rothschild & Co nor any of its affiliates (nor their respective directors, officers, employees or agents) owes or accepts any duty, liability or responsibility whatsoever (whether direct or indirect, whether in contract, in tort, under statute or otherwise) to any person who is not a client of Rothschild & Co in connection with this Announcement, any statement contained herein, the Acquisition or otherwise. No representation or warranty, express or implied, is made by Rothschild & Co as to the contents of this Announcement.

Investec Bank plc ("Investec"), which is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority (the "PRA") and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and PRA in the United Kingdom, is acting exclusively as financial adviser and joint corporate broker to Go-Ahead and for no one else in connection with the Acquisition and will not be responsible to any person other than Go-Ahead for providing the protections afforded to clients of Investec, nor for providing advice in relation to the Acquisition, the content of this announcement or any matter referred to in this announcement. Neither Investec nor any of its subsidiaries, branches or affiliates owes or accepts any duty, liability or responsibility whatsoever (whether direct or indirect, whether in contract, in tort, under statute or otherwise) to any person who is not a client of Investec in connection with this announcement, any statement contained herein or otherwise.

Peel Hunt LLP, which is authorised and regulated by the FCA, is acting exclusively for Go-Ahead in its capacity as financial adviser and joint corporate broker and no one else in connection with the Acquisition or any other matter referred to in this announcement, and will not be responsible to anyone other than Go-Ahead for providing the protections afforded to clients of Peel Hunt LLP or for providing advice in connection with the Acquisition or any other matters referred to in this announcement. Neither Peel Hunt LLP nor any of its affiliates (nor their respective directors, officers, employees or agents) owes or accepts any duty, liability or responsibility whatsoever (whether direct or indirect, whether in contract, in tort, under statute or otherwise) to any person who is not a client of Peel Hunt LLP in connection with the Acquisition, this announcement, any statement contained herein or otherwise. No representation or warranty, express or implied, is made by Peel Hunt LLP as to the contents of this announcement.

UBS AG London Branch ("UBS AG LB") is authorised and regulated by the Financial Market Supervisory Authority in Switzerland. It is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and subject to regulation by the Financial Conduct Authority and limited regulation by the Prudential Regulation Authority in the United Kingdom. UBS Europe SE ("UBS ESE") is authorised and regulated by the Bundesanstalt für Finanzdienstleistungaufsicht (BaFin) and the European Central Bank (ECB). UBS AGLB, UBS ESE and UBS Securities Australia Limited (together, "UBS") are acting as lead financial adviser exclusively for the Consortium and no one else in connection with the matters set out in this announcement. In connection with such matters, UBS, its affiliates, and it's or their respective directors, officers, employees and agents will not regard any other person as its client, nor will it be responsible to any other person for providing the protections afforded to its clients or for providing advice in relation to the contents of this announcement or any other matter referred to herein.

Banco Santander, S.A. ("Santander") is a credit institution which is registered with the Bank of Spain with number 0049. Banco Santander, S.A., London Branch is a branch of Santander with its principal place of business located at 2 Triton Square, Regent's Place, London NW1 3AN and is authorised by the Bank of Spain and is subject to regulatory oversight on certain matters in the UK by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulatory Authority. Santander is acting exclusively as co-financial adviser to the Consortium and no one else in connection with the matters referred to in this announcement and will not be responsible to anyone other than the Consortium for providing the protections afforded to clients of Santander or any of its affiliates, or for providing advice in relation to any matter referred to in this announcement. Neither Santander, nor any of its affiliates, owes or accepts any duty, liability or responsibility whatsoever (whether direct or indirect, whether in contract, in tort, under statute or otherwise) to any person who is not a client of Santander in connection with this announcement or any matter referred to herein.

Disclosure requirements of the Takeover Code

Under Rule 8.3(a) of the Takeover Code, any person who is interested in 1% or more of any class of relevant securities of an offeree company or of any securities exchange offeror (being any offeror other than an offeror in respect of which it has been announced that its offer is, or is likely to be, solely in cash) must make an Opening Position Disclosure following the commencement of the offer period and, if later, following the announcement in which any securities exchange offeror is first identified. An Opening Position Disclosure must contain details of the person's interests and short positions in, and rights to subscribe for, any relevant securities of each of (i) the offeree company and (ii) any securities exchange offeror(s). An Opening Position Disclosure by a person to whom Rule 8.3(a) applies must be made by no later than 3.30 pm (London time) on the 10th business day following the commencement of the offer period and, if appropriate, by no later than 3.30 pm (London time) on the 10th business day following the announcement in which any securities exchange offeror is first identified. Relevant persons who deal in the relevant securities of the offeree company or of a securities exchange offeror prior to the deadline for making an Opening Position Disclosure must instead make a Dealing Disclosure.

Under Rule 8.3(b) of the Takeover Code, any person who is, or becomes, interested in 1% or more of any class of relevant securities of the offeree company or of any securities exchange offeror must make a Dealing Disclosure if the person deals in any relevant securities of the offeree company or of any securities exchange offeror. A Dealing Disclosure must contain details of the dealing concerned and of the person's interests and short positions in, and rights to subscribe for, any relevant securities of each of (i) the offeree company and (ii) any securities exchange offeror(s), save to the extent that these details have previously been disclosed under Rule 8. A Dealing Disclosure by a person to whom Rule 8.3(b) applies must be made by no later than 3.30 pm (London time) on the business day following the date of the relevant dealing.

If two or more persons act together pursuant to an agreement or understanding, whether formal or informal, to acquire or control an interest in relevant securities of an offeree company or a securities exchange offeror, they will be deemed to be a single person for the purpose of Rule 8.3.

Opening Position Disclosures must also be made by the offeree company and by any offeror and Dealing Disclosures must also be made by the offeree company, by any offeror and by any persons acting in concert with any of them (see Rules 8.1, 8.2 and 8.4).

Details of the offeree and offeror companies in respect of whose relevant securities Opening Position Disclosures and Dealing Disclosures must be made can be found in the Disclosure Table on the Takeover Panel's website atwww.thetakeoverpanel.org.uk, including details of the number of relevant securities in issue, when the offer period commenced and when any offeror was first identified. You should contact the Panel's Market Surveillance Unit on +44 (0)20 7638 0129 if you are in any doubt as to whether you are required to make an Opening Position Disclosure or a Dealing Disclosure.

Publication on a website

This Announcement shall be made available, subject to certain restrictions relating to persons resident in Restricted Jurisdictions, on Go-Ahead's website at www. https://www.go-ahead.com/investors/offer and on Bidco's website at https://www.gerrardbid.com by 12 noon (London time) on the business day following the date of this Announcement. For the avoidance of doubt, the contents of these websites are not incorporated into and do not form part of this Announcement.

 

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