A Couche Tard convenience store is shown in Montreal, Friday, October 5, 2012.Graham Hughes/The Canadian Press
Takeover target Caltex Australia Ltd. said on Monday it would allow Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc. to conduct additional due diligence, after the Canadian firm raised its buyout offer to 8.80-billion Australian dollars ($7.8-billion) last week.
Quebec-based Couche-Tard bumped up its cash offer by 2 per cent to 35.25 Australian dollars a share in a final attempt to sway the oil refiner and convenience store firm after interest from Britain’s EG Group.
EG Group has yet to bid, although Caltex said last month the retailer – backed by British private equity firm TDR Capital – had expressed interest in buying some or all of the company.
Caltex said the due diligence given to Couche-Tard would be on a non-exclusive basis.
Couche-Tard’s revised bid was its third and final offer in the absence of a competing proposal. Caltex turned down two previous offers, but provided the firm with non-public information to elicit a better proposal.
The Sydney-based firm said in a statement its board believed it was in the interests of shareholders to engage further with Couche-Tard.
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