Portugal's CGD and Brazil’s Votorantim sign shareholders’ agreement for Cimentos de Portugal
[ 2010-02-04
]
Lisbon, Portugal, 4 Feb – Portuguese state group Caixa Geral de Depósitos (CGD) has signed a shareholders’ agreement with Brazilian group Votorantim in which the parties commit to not exceed a joint 30 percent of voting rights in Portuguese cement group, Cimpor.
“Following the acquisition by Votorantim Cimentos of a stake representing 17.5 percent of voting rights in Cimpor-Cimentos de Portugal, Caixa Geral de Depósitos decided to sign a shareholders’ agreement with Votorantim,” the Portuguese bank said in the statement.
On Wednesday, Votorantim acquired a 17.28 percent stake that French group Lafarge previously held in Cimpor.
With a view to meeting those objectives, the two companies reciprocally agreed to set up a voting syndicate, maintain their stakes in Cimpor and established restrictions on the sale of their respective stakes.
The commitments include no acquisition of shares that would result in the two parties having more than 30 percent of the voting rights in Cimpor, and “even in exceptional situations outlined in the contract, not exceeding 32 percent.”
CGD and Votorantim have also committed to keeping their shares “without affecting the CGD’s current contractual commitments and a likely stabilisation in the long term of the stake of both parties at a minimum of 22.5 percent of voting rights.”
The agreement signed is for an initial period of 10 years and, in terms of first refusal to buy, each company will give the other the first option to buy should they sell off their shares.
Another Brazilian company, Companhia Siderúrgica Nacional (CSN), on 17 February launched a takeover bid for Cimpor at 5.75 euros per share.
The company’s biggest shareholders are Teixeira Duarte (22.9 percent), Votorantim (17.3 percent), Manuel Fino (10.7 percent), BCP pension fund (10 percent), CGD (9.6 percent), Bipadosa (6.5 percent) and Cinveste (4.1 percent). (macauhub)
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