8th Aug 2007 11:00
Laidlaw International, Inc. (NYSE: LI) announced today that eachof it and FirstGroup plc ("FirstGroup") has exercised its right toextend the date on which either party may terminate the mergeragreement governing FirstGroup's proposed acquisition of Laidlaw fromAugust 8, 2007 to November 8, 2007. On February 8, 2007, Laidlawentered into a merger agreement with FirstGroup under which FirstGroupwill acquire all of the outstanding common shares of Laidlaw for$35.25 per share in cash. £ As announced on July 11, 2007, Laidlaw and FirstGroup entered intoa timing agreement with the Antitrust Division of the U.S. Departmentof Justice ("Antitrust Division") to provide the Antitrust Divisionwith additional time to complete its review of the proposed merger.Laidlaw and FirstGroup remain committed to working with the AntitrustDivision as it conducts its review and to completing the merger. £ Certain statements contained in this press release, includingstatements that are not historical facts, are forward-lookingstatements made under the safe-harbor provisions of the PrivateSecurities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-lookingstatements can be identified by the use of terminology such as:believe, hope, may, anticipate, should, intend, plan, will, expect,estimate, continue, project, positioned, strategy and similarexpressions. Such statements involve certain risks, uncertainties andassumptions that include, but are not limited to: £ -- Risks and uncertainties related to the proposed merger with FirstGroup, including but not limited to receiving approval from the required regulatory agencies as well as the satisfaction of other customary closing conditions; £ -- Economic and other market factors, including competitive pressures and changes in pricing policies; £ -- The ability to implement initiatives designed to increase operating efficiencies or improve results; £ -- Costs and risks associated with litigation and indemnification obligations; £ -- Changes in interpretations of existing, or the adoption of new, legislation, regulations or other laws; £ -- The potential for rising labor costs and actions taken by organized labor unions; £ -- Continued increases in prices of fuel and potential shortages; £ -- Control of costs related to accident and other risk management claims; £ -- Terrorism and other acts of violence; £ -- The ability to produce sufficient future taxable income to allow us to recover our deferred tax assets; £ -- The ability to pay dividends; £ -- Potential changes in the mix of businesses we operate; £ -- The inability to earn sufficient returns on pension plan assets thus requiring increased funding; and £ -- Other risks and uncertainties described in Laidlaw's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). £ Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, orshould underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual outcomes mayvary materially from those indicated. In light of these risks anduncertainties you are cautioned not to place undue reliance on theseforward-looking statements. Laidlaw undertakes no obligation topublicly update forward-looking statements, whether as a result of newinformation, future events or otherwise. You are advised, however, toconsult any further disclosures Laidlaw makes on related subjects asmay be detailed in Laidlaw's other filings made from time to time withthe SEC. £ Laidlaw International, Inc. is a holding company for NorthAmerica's largest providers of school and inter-city bus transportservices and a leading supplier of public transit services. Thecompany's businesses operate under the brands: Laidlaw EducationServices, Greyhound Lines, Greyhound Canada and Laidlaw Transit.Laidlaw's shares trade on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: LI). Formore information on Laidlaw, visit the website: www.laidlaw.com. Copyright Business Wire 2007Related Shares:
Firstgroup