30th Oct 2019 09:28
(Alliance News) - Inmarsat PLC said Wednesday a group of regulators from around the world, including in the UK, said its takeover can go ahead.
Inmarsat in March agreed to a GBP3.4 billion takeover by a consortium including private equity firm Apax Partners LLP, Warburg Pincus International LLC, the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan Board, and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board.
The satellite firm said Wednesday the regulatory conditions for the deal had been satisfied in Austria, China, Germany, Russia, Italy, the US and the UK.
As a result, Inmarsat has provisionally booked a court hearing to sanction the takeover on November 12. The companies are still awaiting regulatory approval from the authorities in Australia.
If regulatory approval is received from Australia, and the November 12 court hearing goes ahead, Inmarsat shares will be suspended from trading on the FTSE 250 on November 13 before being de-listed on November 14.
The UK government had been pondering whether the deal could go ahead despite the UK Competition & Markets Authority finding no competition concerns in the deal.
However, the UK Ministry of Defence found two national security concerns: firstly, that insufficient security controls could result in unauthorised access to defence and security data held by Inmarsat, and secondly, that "certain capabilities" used by Inmarsat could be halted or sold abroad.
A third party also has raised concerns that Inmarsat could stop offering satellite services used in the Global Maritime Distress & Safety System.
Inmarsat and the buyers made a series of commitments to assuage these concerns. Including a promise to uphold any contractual agreements with the UK MoD and to give ample warning if it is not able to continue doing so.
Shares in Inmarsat were 0.2% lower in London on Wednesday morning at 551.00 pence each.
By Paul McGowan; [email protected]
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