MERGERS AND ACQUISITIONS – AUSTRALIA

Glencore still on acquisition trail

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Original article by Paul Garvey
The Australian – Page: 22 : 11-Aug-17

Glencore has posted 68 per cent growth in EBITDA for the first half of 2017, to $US6.74bn, while its net debt has fallen by 11 per cent to $US13.9bn. CEO Ivan Glasenberg says the diversified resources and commodity trading group is always looking at potential acquisitions, and it would consider another bid for Rio Tinto’s Hunter Valley coal mines if Yancoal Australia’s $US2.69bn deal to buy the assets is blocked. Yancoal trumped Glencore’s own bid.

CORPORATES
GLEDHILL, BURRIDGE AND CATHRO, YANCOAL AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX YAL, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, COAL AND ALLIED INDUSTRIES LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. TAKEOVERS PANEL, SENRIGAN CAPITAL GROUP LIMITED, FIRST QUANTUM MINERALS LIMITED

Noble Group to challenge Yancoal raising

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Original article by James Thomson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 : 3-Aug-17

Glencore will buy $US300m worth of shares in Yancoal Australia via the latter’s $US2.5bn ($A3.1bn) equity raising, which will be used to finance its acquisition of Rio Tinto’s coal assets in the Hunter Valley. However, Noble Group claims that the capital raising will "oppress" minority shareholders such as itself, with their stakes to be diluted as a result of the new capital. Yancoal estimates that acquiring the Rio Tinto assets will generate synergies of $A120m to $A145m.

CORPORATES
YANCOAL AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX YAL, GLENCORE PLC, NOBLE GROUP LIMITED, SENRIGAN CAPITAL GROUP LIMITED, COAL AND ALLIED INDUSTRIES LIMITED, YANZHOU COAL MINING COMPANY LIMITED, SHANDONG TAIZHON ENERGY COMPANY, GENERAL NICE DEVELOPMENT LIMITED, CINDA ASSET MANAGEMENT CORPORATION, SHANDONG LUCION INVESTMENT HOLDINGS GROUP COMPANY LIMITED, MITSUBISHI CORPORATION, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP

Lone Star joins pack tuning into Ten

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Original article by Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 29 : 31-Jul-17

About nine potential buyers of the Ten Network have obtained an information memorandum and signed a non-disclosure agreement. They are believed to include US private equity firm Lone Star Funds, which boasts some $US70bn ($A87.7bn) worth of assets under management. Oaktree Capital Management, hedge fund Anchorage Capital and CBS Corporation have also expressed interest in buying Ten. Indicative bids for the failed network must be submitted by late August.

CORPORATES
TEN NETWORK HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX TEN, LONE STAR FUNDS, OAKTREE CAPITAL MANAGEMENT LLC, ANCHORAGE CAPITAL PARTNERS PTY LTD, CBS CORPORATION, FORTRESS INVESTMENT GROUP LLC, ASTRO JAPAN PROPERTY GROUP – ASX AJA, AWE LIMITED – ASX AWE, PPB ADVISORY, MOELIS AND COMPANY, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, 21ST CENTURY FOX INCORPORATED, ILLYRIA PTY LTD, BIRKETU PTY LTD, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC

China pullback won’t dent local M&A

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Original article by Joyce Moullakis
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 20 : 31-Jul-17

Data from Dealogic shows that $US40.7bn ($A50.9bn) worth of mergers and acquisitions involving Australian companies have been announced so far in 2017. Minter Ellison partner Alberto Colla expects Japanese corporate raiders to continue to target local companies following a number of deals over the last 18 months. The law firm anticipates that US and Canadian companies will also be key drivers of M&A activity in Australia, particularly if Chinese deal-making is affected by China’s new regulations on financial outflows.

CORPORATES
DEALOGIC (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, MINTER ELLISON, TOLL HOLDINGS LIMITED, JAPAN POST COMPANY LIMITED, BRADKEN LIMITED, HITACHI CONSTRUCTION MACHINERY COMPANY LIMITED, ASG GROUP LIMITED, NOMURA RESEARCH INSTITUTE, PROGRAMMED MAINTENANCE SERVICES LIMITED – ASX PRG, PERSOL, SPOTLESS GROUP HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX SPO, DOWNER EDI LIMITED – ASX DOW, VOCUS GROUP LIMITED – ASX VOC, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, AUSTRALIAN TAXATION OFFICE, AUSTRALIA. FOREIGN INVESTMENT REVIEW BOARD, CORNERSTONE RESEARCH GROUP, STANFORD UNIVERSITY, KATANA ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED, SLATER AND GORDON LIMITED – ASX SGH, QUINDELL PLC, CIMIC GROUP LIMITED – ASX CIM

Glencore nears $1.4bn deal on Rio coalmines

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Original article by Matt Chambers
The Australian – Page: 17 & 20 : 28-Jul-17

Yancoal Australia is set to on-sell some of its newly-acquired New South Wales thermal coal assets to Glencore in a deal worth $US1.139b ($A1.42bn). Glencore will acquire a 49 per cent stake in the Hunter Valley Operations from Yancoal and Mitsubishi following the completion of Yancoal’s acquisition of Rio Tinto’s NSW coal mines for $US2.69bn. Yancoal had trumped Glencore in a bidding war for the Rio Tinto assets.

CORPORATES
YANCOAL AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX YAL, GLENCORE PLC, MITOLO GROUP PTY LTD, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, COAL AND ALLIED INDUSTRIES LIMITED, YANZHOU COAL MINING COMPANY LIMITED

Charter Hall tipped to pay $A250 million for Hastings

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Original article by Nick Lenaghan, Matthew Cranston
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 32 : 25-Jul-17

Charter Hall Group and Westpac have reported that they are in discussions with a view to the former buying Westpac’s Hastings Funds Management business. Hastings, which was started by former Carlton football player Mike Fitzpatrick, has an infrastructure portfolio valued at $A14.3 billion, with investments in assets such as the port of Newcastle and Perth Airport. Experts suggest that Charter Hall will have to pay about $A250 million for Hastings.

CORPORATES
CHARTER HALL GROUP – ASX CHC, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, HASTINGS FUNDS MANAGEMENT LIMITED, CARLTON FOOTBALL CLUB LIMITED, QIC LIMITED, AMP CAPITAL INVESTORS LIMITED, BROOKFIELD CAPITAL MANAGEMENT LIMITED

Stars align for Packer as Ellerston swoops

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Original article by Sarah-Jane Tasker, Damon Kitney
The Australian – Page: 17 & 28 : 18-Jul-17

Ellerston Capital has become a substantial shareholder in casino operator The Star Entertainment Group, after increasing its stake in mid-July. Crown Resorts’ major shareholder James Packer is a passive investor in Ellerston, with a 25 per cent stake. Ellerston’s move to increase its stake in The Star has prompted speculation of a potential consolidation in the gambling sector, particularly in the wake of Crown’s decision to focus on its Australian operations. Rohan Sundram of Citigroup recently noted the synergies arising from a merger between Crown and The Star.

CORPORATES
THE STAR ENTERTAINMENT GROUP LIMITED – ASX SGR, ELLERSTON CAPITAL PTY LTD, CROWN RESORTS LIMITED – ASX CWN, CITIGROUP PTY LTD, PERPETUAL LIMITED – ASX PPT, GENTING BERHAD, CONSOLIDATED PRESS HOLDINGS LIMITED, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, ELLERSTON AUSTRALIAN SHARE FUND, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG

A union merger that will cost us all

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Original article by
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 38 : 14-Jul-17

The proposed merger between the Construction, Forestry, Mining & Energy Union and two smaller unions will strengthen the union movement’s influence on the Australian economy. An enlarged CFMEU would have unprecedented control over the supply chain from "pit to port" across the nation’s resources sector. While the merger will be welcomed by the Australian Labor Party, a merger in the corporate sector that would result in a similar monopoly over labour supply would attract scrutiny from the competition regulator. Editorial.

CORPORATES
CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA, MARITIME UNION OF AUSTRALIA, TEXTILE, CLOTHING AND FOOTWEAR UNION OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, BORAL LIMITED – ASX BLD, DE MARTIN AND GASPARINI PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION COMMISSION, CHEVRON CORPORATION

Militant super union a step closer

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Original article by David Marin-Guzman
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 13-Jul-17

The Construction, Forestry, Mining & Energy Union has submitted a formal application to merge with two smaller unions. It wants the Maritime Union of Australia and the Textile, Clothing & Footwear Union to be exempt from a ballot, given their much smaller membership bases. Meanwhile, the Australian Mines & Metals Association has expressed concern about the potential impact of the proposed mega-union on the supply chain across the resources and energy sector. It will lobby the Federal Government to introduce laws requiring union mergers to satisfy a public interest test.

CORPORATES
CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA, MARITIME UNION OF AUSTRALIA, TEXTILE, CLOTHING AND FOOTWEAR UNION OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN MINES AND METALS ASSOCIATION (INCORPORATED), AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF EMPLOYMENT, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, CHEVRON CORPORATION, GORGON PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Tatts takeover at risk of delay, says Tabcorp

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Original article by Sarah-Jane Tasker
The Australian – Page: 19 : 12-Jul-17

Tabcorp has advised shareholders that a court challenge should not affect its timetable to complete an $A11bn merger with Tatts Group. The wagering giant still expects the deal to be completed during the December 2017 quarter, despite a move by the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission to seek a judicial review of the Competition Tribunal’s decision to approve the merger. Tabcorp has indicated that it will push for an expedited hearing of the ACCC’s application to the Federal Court.

CORPORATES
TABCORP HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX TAH, TATTS GROUP LIMITED – ASX TTS, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. COMPETITION TRIBUNAL, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, DEUTSCHE BANK AG, ORD MINNETT GROUP LIMITED, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG, PACIFIC CONSORTIUM