REG - Pod Point Group Hdgs - Extension of PUSU Deadline & Timing of Results

Pod Point groupAnnouncement

22/05/2025 10:30

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RNS Number : 7888J  Pod Point Group Holdings PLC  22 May 2025

NOT FOR RELEASE, PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION, IN WHOLE OR IN PART, DIRECTLY OR
INDIRECTLY, IN, INTO OR FROM ANY JURISDICTION WHERE TO DO SO WOULD CONSTITUTE
A VIOLATION OF THE RELEVANT LAWS OR REGULATIONS OF THAT JURISDICTION.

THIS ANNOUNCEMENT DOES NOT CONSTITUTE A FIRM INTENTION TO MAKE AN OFFER UNDER
RULE 2.7 OF THE CITY CODE ON TAKEOVERS AND MERGERS (THE "CODE"). THERE CAN BE
NO CERTAINTY THAT ANY FIRM OFFER WILL BE MADE.

THIS ANNOUNCEMENT CONTAINS INSIDE INFORMATION.

Date: 22 May 2025

For Immediate Release
 

Pod Point Group Holdings PLC (Symbol: PODP)

("Pod Point", the "Group" or the "Company")

Extension of PUSU deadline and update on timing of FY24 Results

PUSU Extension

On 24 April 2025, the Board of Pod Point announced that it had received a
non-binding conditional proposal from EDF Energy Customers Limited ("EDF"),
currently a c.53 % shareholder in the Company, to acquire the entire issued
and to be issued share capital of the Company that it does not already own for
a price of 6.5 pence per Pod Point share in cash (the "Possible Offer").

The Board of Pod Point has continued to actively engage with EDF since receipt
of the Possible Offer with a view to supporting an offer for the Company.
Having carefully considered the viability of all available options together
with the preliminary view of its financial adviser (which remains subject to
the formal completion of the necessary Rule 3 work), the Independent Directors
of Pod Point remain of the view that the Possible Offer may represent the
better option for Pod Point's shareholders, creditors and other stakeholders.

In accordance with Rule 2.6(a) of the Code, EDF was required, by no later than
5:00 p.m. on 22 May 2025 (the "PUSU Deadline"), to either announce a firm
intention to make an offer for Pod Point in accordance with Rule 2.7 of the
Code or announce that it does not intend to make an offer, in which case the
announcement will be treated as a statement to which Rule 2.8 of the Code
applies.

To allow the discussions with EDF to continue, and to provide further time for
the Company to finalise and publish its audited FY24 Results, as further set
out below, the Company has requested, and both EDF and the Panel on Takeovers
and Mergers (the "Takeover Panel") have consented to an extension of the PUSU
Deadline. Consequently, in accordance with Rule 2.6(c) of the Code, EDF is now
required, by not later than 5.00 pm on 6 June 2025, to either announce a firm
intention to make an offer for Pod Point in accordance with Rule 2.7 of the
Code or announce that it does not intend to make an offer for Pod Point, in
which case the announcement will be treated as a statement to which Rule 2.8
of the Code applies.

In accordance with Rule 2.6(c) of the Code, the revised deadline may be
extended further with the consent of the Takeover Panel.

In accordance with Rule 2.5 of the Code, EDF reserves the right to vary the
form and/or mix of the consideration described in this announcement. EDF also
reserves the right to make an offer for Pod Point on less favourable terms
than those described in this announcement: (i) with the agreement or
recommendation of the Board of Pod Point; (ii) if a third party announces a
firm intention to make an offer for Pod Point on less favourable terms; or
(iii) following the announcement by Pod Point of a Rule 9 waiver transaction
pursuant to Appendix 1 of the Code or a reverse takeover (as defined in the
Code). EDF reserves the right to reduce the consideration by the amount of any
dividend or other distribution or return of capital which is paid or becomes
payable by Pod Point to Pod Point shareholders after the date of this
announcement.

There can be no certainty that any firm offer will be made for the Company.

The Company remains in an 'offer period' in accordance with the rules of the
Code and the attention of Pod Point shareholders is drawn to the continuing
disclosure requirements of Rule 8 of the Code, which are summarised below.

Further announcements will be made in due course. In the meantime, Pod Point
shareholders are not required to take any action in relation to the Possible
Offer.

Update on timing of FY24 Results

The Company also announced on 24 April 2025 that, as a result of the Possible
Offer by EDF, the Board had been considering the potential impacts on its FY24
results and would not be in a position to publish its audited FY24 results by
30 April 2025. As a result, the Company's shares have been suspended from
listing and trading since 1 May 2025.

The Company announces that significant work on the FY24 results has been
ongoing and now expects that the audited financial results for FY24 will be
published in early June 2025. The Company continues to anticipate that the
suspension will be lifted once the audit is completed and the FY24 annual
report and accounts are published.

This announcement is being made with the consent of EDF.

For further information:

 Pod Point                                                                                                                                                                  phil.clark@pod-point.com (mailto:phil.clark@pod-point.com)

 Melanie Lane, Chief Executive Officer

 Michael Jay, Acting Chief Financial Officer

 Phil Clark, Investor Relations

 Panmure Liberum                                                                                                                                                            +44 (0)20 3100 2000

 (Sole Financial Adviser, Sole Rule 3 Adviser and Joint Corporate Broker)

 Stephen Jones

 Tim Medak

 Edward Mansfield

 Amrit Mahbubani

 Canaccord                                                                                                                                                                  +44 (0)20 7523 8150

 (Joint Corporate Broker)

 Bobbie Hilliam

 Harry Pardoe

 Teneo                                                                                                                                                                      +44 (0)20 7353 4200 PodPoint@teneo.com

 (Media)

 Matt Low

 Arthur Rogers

 

Notice related to advisers

Panmure Liberum Limited ("Panmure Liberum"), which is authorised and regulated
by the Financial Conduct Authority in the United Kingdom, is acting
exclusively for Pod Point and for no one else in connection with the subject
matter of this announcement and will not be responsible to anyone other than
Pod Point for providing the protections afforded to its clients or for
providing advice in connection with the subject matter of this announcement.
Neither Panmure Liberum nor any of its affiliates (nor their respective
directors, officers, employees or agents) owes or accepts any duty, liability
or responsibility whatsoever (whether direct or indirect, whether in contract,
in tort, under statute or otherwise) to any person who is not a client of
Panmure Liberum in connection with this announcement, any statement contained
herein or otherwise.

Canaccord Genuity Limited ("Canaccord Genuity"), which is authorised and
regulated in the United Kingdom by the Financial Conduct Authority, is acting
exclusively for Pod Point and for no-one else in connection with the matters
referred to in this Announcement and will not be responsible to any person
other than Pod Point for providing the protections afforded to clients of
Canaccord Genuity, nor for providing advice in relation to the matters
referred to herein. Neither Canaccord Genuity nor any of its affiliates (nor
any of its or their respective directors, officers, employees, representatives
or agents) owes or accepts any duty, liability or responsibility whatsoever
(whether direct or indirect, whether in contract, in tort, under statute or
otherwise) to any person who is not a client of Canaccord Genuity in
connection with the matters referred to in this Announcement, or otherwise.

Important notices

The release, publication or distribution of this announcement in, into or from
jurisdictions outside the United Kingdom in whole or in part, directly or
indirectly, may be restricted by laws of the relevant jurisdictions and
therefore persons into whose possession this announcement comes should inform
themselves about, and observe, any such restrictions. Any failure to comply
with such restrictions may constitute a violation of the securities law of any
such jurisdiction.

This announcement is for information purposes only, and is not intended to and
does not constitute, or form part of, any offer, invitation or the
solicitation of an offer to purchase, otherwise acquire, subscribe for, sell
or otherwise dispose of any securities, or the solicitation of any vote or
approval in any jurisdiction whether pursuant to this announcement or
otherwise.

Disclosure requirements of the Code

Under Rule 8.3(a) of the Code, any person who is interested in 1% or more of
any class of relevant securities of an offeree company or of any securities
exchange offeror (being any offeror other than an offeror in respect of which
it has been announced that its offer is, or is likely to be, solely in cash)
must make an Opening Position Disclosure following the commencement of the
offer period and, if later, following the announcement in which any securities
exchange offeror is first identified. An Opening Position Disclosure must
contain details of the person's interests and short positions in, and rights
to subscribe for, any relevant securities of each of (i) the offeree company
and (ii) any securities exchange offeror(s). An Opening Position Disclosure by
a person to whom Rule 8.3(a) applies must be made by no later than 3.30 p.m.
(London time) on the 10th business day following the commencement of the offer
period and, if appropriate, by no later than 3.30 p.m. (London time) on the
10th business day following the announcement in which any securities exchange
offeror is first identified. Relevant persons who deal in the relevant
securities of the offeree company or of a securities exchange offeror prior to
the deadline for making an Opening Position Disclosure must instead make a
Dealing Disclosure.

Under Rule 8.3(b) of the Code, any person who is, or becomes, interested in 1%
or more of any class of relevant securities of the offeree company or of any
securities exchange offeror must make a Dealing Disclosure if the person deals
in any relevant securities of the offeree company or of any securities
exchange offeror. A Dealing Disclosure must contain details of the dealing
concerned and of the person's interests and short positions in, and rights to
subscribe for, any relevant securities of each of (i) the offeree company and
(ii) any securities exchange offeror(s), save to the extent that these details
have previously been disclosed under Rule 8. A Dealing Disclosure by a person
to whom Rule 8.3(b) applies must be made by no later than 3.30 p.m. (London
time) on the business day following the date of the relevant dealing.

If two or more persons act together pursuant to an agreement or understanding,
whether formal or informal, to acquire or control an interest in relevant
securities of an offeree company or a securities exchange offeror, they will
be deemed to be a single person for the purpose of Rule 8.3.

Opening Position Disclosures must also be made by the offeree company and by
any offeror and Dealing Disclosures must also be made by the offeree company,
by any offeror and by any persons acting in concert with any of them (see
Rules 8.1, 8.2 and 8.4).

Details of the offeree and offeror companies in respect of whose relevant
securities Opening Position Disclosures and Dealing Disclosures must be made
can be found in the Disclosure Table on the Panel's website at
www.thetakeoverpanel.org.uk, including details of the number of relevant
securities in issue, when the offer period commenced and when any offeror was
first identified. You should contact the Panel's Market Surveillance Unit on
+44 (0)20 7638 0129 if you are in any doubt as to whether you are required to
make an Opening Position Disclosure or a Dealing Disclosure.

Forward looking statements

This announcement, oral statements made regarding the Possible Offer, and
other information published by Pod Point may contain statements which are, or
may be deemed to be, "forward-looking statements". Forward-looking statements
are prospective in nature and are not based on historical facts, but rather on
current expectations and projections of the management of Pod Point about
future events, and are therefore subject to risks and uncertainties which
could cause actual results to differ materially from the future results
expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. The forward-looking
statements contained in this announcement include statements relating to the
expected effects of the Possible Offer on Pod Point, the expected timing and
scope of the Possible Offer and other statements other than historical facts.
Often, but not always, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use
of forward-looking words such as "plans", "expects" or "does not expect", "is
expected", "is subject to", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts",
"intends", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate", or "believes", or
variations of such words and phrases or statements that certain actions,
events or results "may", "could", "should", "would", "might" or "will" be
taken, occur or be achieved. Although Pod Point believes that the expectations
reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, Pod Point can
give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. By their
nature, forward-looking statements involve risk and uncertainty because they
relate to events and depend on circumstances that will occur in the future.
There are a number of factors that could cause actual results and developments
to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking
statements. Other unknown or unpredictable factors could cause actual results
to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Such
forward-looking statements should therefore be construed in the light of such
factors. Neither Pod Point, nor any of its respective associates or directors,
officers or advisers, provides any representation, assurance or guarantee that
the occurrence of the events expressed or implied in any forward-looking
statements in this announcement will actually occur. You are cautioned not to
place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. Other than in
accordance with their legal or regulatory obligations (including under the UK
Listing Rules and the Disclosure and Transparency Rules of the FCA), Pod Point
is under no obligation, and Pod Point expressly disclaims any intention or
obligation, to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a
result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Website publication

In accordance with Rule 26.1 of the Code, a copy of this announcement will be
published, subject to certain restrictions relating to persons resident in
restricted jurisdictions, on Pod Point's website at
https://investors.pod-point.com (https://investors.pod-point.com) promptly and
by no later than 12 noon (London time) on the business day following the date
of this announcement. The content of this website is not incorporated in, and
does not form part of, this announcement.

MAR

The individual responsible for releasing this announcement on behalf of Pod
Point is Anita Guernari, Company Secretary. The information contained within
this announcement is deemed by Pod Point to constitute inside information for
the purposes of Article 7 of the assimilated Regulation (EU) No.596/2014 as it
forms part of UK law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018, as
amended. Upon the publication of this announcement via a Regulatory
Information Service, such information is now considered to be in the public
domain.

 

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