Dairy group Sodiaal has submitted an offer to acquire 100% of the capital of French counterpart Entremont Alliance.
Exclusive negotiations on a proposed merger between Entremont Alliance and Sodiaal were re-opened at the end of last year after Lactalis’s bid for the struggling emmental maker was rejected.
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The proposals made provision for Sodiaal to have a majority shareholding in the new merged group, with Belgian financier Albert Frère retaining a minority stake of 15%. Frère is the controlling investor in Unifem, Entremont’s sole shareholder.
However, in recent days, Sodiaal has changed its position, with CEO Claude Sendowski revealing that the group has made an offer for all of Entremont’s assets.
“This offer is now being considered by Unifem, who have requested further details on what provision Sodiaal has made for Entremont’s debts of EUR335.6m (US$460.3m),” a source close to the negotiations told just-food today (17 February).
The source confirmed French reports that a representative of Albert Frère had described Sodiaal’s bid, as it stands, as “unacceptable” and that the value it puts on Entremont as “absurd.”
“The focus of the negotiations has changed completely in that the sale of Entremont Alliance is now on the table. That’s not to say we are further away from a deal than before but there remains a lot of ground to cover, with the banks being a key element in the process,” the source added.
