Hll Set To Make Offer For Balance Rossell Stake

Fast moving consumer goods major Hindustan Lever and Unilever Overseas Holdings BV, acting in concert with Lipton India Exports, is making an open offer to acquire the remaining 4.11 percent stake in Rossell Industries at Rs 120 a share. The offer will open on January 10 and close on July 8.

Unilever Group's holding currently stands at 95. 89 per cent in Rossell Industries, the erstwhile tea outfit of YK Modi Holdings.

The company has informed the Bombay Stock Exchange today that the public shareholding in Rossell has fallen below 10 per cent of the voting share capital of Rossell and in compliance with Sebi Regulation 21 (3), "Lipton is making a second offer to the balance shareholders of Rossell for acquiring 4.16 lakh equity shares of Rs 10 each representing 4.11 per cent of the outstanding equity share capital of Rossell at Rs 120 per share." The HLL Group intends to delist Rossell Industries.

 

The three companies, in October last year, made an offer to buy 10.38 percent in Rossell Industries and the second offer is for shareholders who did not tender their shares the first time. Unilever Overseas Holdings BV (UOH), a wholly owned subsidiary of Unilever Plc, and Lipton India Exports together held 89.62 per cent in Rossell.

UOH had acquired 36.56 per cent of the share capital of Rossell Industries. It later acquired 28.47 per cent from the erstwhile promoters YK Modi and his associates. Later it made an open offer to shareholders of Rossell to acquire 34.97 per cent of share capital at a price of Rs 173 per share. Following this open offer, UOH could garner only 24.59 per cent This was over and above the equity bought from YK Modi.