Petroceltic Reverses Worldview Rebuff

Petroceltic has reversed its recommendation, made on March 3, to shareholders to do nothing about a £0.03/share takeover offer by Cayman Islands-based fund Worldview, and instead says they should accept the offer.

Ireland-based Petroceltic's board issued a statement on April 6 saying that "having regard to the facts... and specifically the likely outcomes for shareholders on conclusion of the Examinership process... and having been so advised by Davy Corporate Finance [advisers to Petroceltic], recommends that shareholders accept the Offer as soon as practicable but, in any event, by no later than 1pm Irish time on April 14 2016. In providing advice to the Board, Davy Corporate Finance has taken into account the commercial assessments of the Board."

In a complex letter to shareholders, Petroceltic chairman Robert Adair wrote that the board had been advised that there was a strong likelihood that existing ordinary [Petroceltic] shares "could be cancelled for no consideration" as a result of the Examinership process.

Trading in Petroceltic shares has been suspended, pending full hearing of a petition by Worldview on April 8 to the High Court of Ireland to appoint an Examiner to Petroceltic and its subsidiaries and to put them under the court’s protection. Under Irish law, an Examiner may be appointed by the court to carry out a corporate restructuring during a fixed 70 day period, extendable to 100 days

Mark Smedley