Australia's Austal rejects $662 mln offer from Hanwha Ocean on regulatory concerns (updated)

Hanwha Life Insurance

01/04/2024 22:57

(Adds deal details in paragraphs 2-5)
       April 2 (Reuters) - Australia's Austal  ASB.AX  said on
Tuesday it had considered an A$1.02 billion ($661.88 million)
takeover offer from South Korea's Hanwha Ocean  042660.KS  and
it was not "satisfied" that the deal would be approved by
Australian and U.S. regulators.
        The defense contractor and shipbuilder said Hanwha's
offer was for A$2.825 per share, representing a premium of 28.4%
to Austal's last closing price.
  
        In November, Austal signed an initial agreement with the
Commonwealth of Australia which would see the company being
selected as the Commonwealth's strategic shipbuilder at
Henderson, Western Australia.
  
        Austal is also a prime contractor designing,
constructing and sustaining ships for the US Navy.
  
        It said that Hanwha's offer is subject to regulatory
approvals including Australia's Foreign Investment Review Board
(FIRB) and U.S. Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency.
  
    "The company is open to further engagement if Hanwha is able
to provide certainty on whether a transaction would be
approved," Austal said in a statement.

($1 = 1.5411 Australian dollars)

 (Reporting by Shivangi Lahiri in Bengaluru; Editing by Alan
Barona and Maju Samuel)
 ((Shivangi.Lahiri@thomsonreuters.com;))