Acquisition of Interest in Bertam Holdings, etc
Rowe Evans Investments PLC
28 February 2000
Purchase of shares of Bertam Holdings PLC ('Bertam')
The board of Rowe Evans Investments PLC announces that the Company has,
on 25 February 2000, purchased 600,000 Bertam shares at a price of £1.50
per share, thereby increasing its interest in Bertam from 33.39% to
36.23%. Bertam owns Malaysian plantations which produce oil palm fresh
fruit bunches. It also owns a 40% interest in the Malaysian property
group, Bertam Properties Sdn. Bhd, which is in the course of developing,
over the next ten to fifteen years, a 3,500-acre plantation in Penang
State into a housing, leisure, commercial and industrial complex.
Bertam's other plantations also possess longer-term property development
potential.
The board further announces that the Company has subscribed for its pro
rata entitlement under a rights issue of new shares by Sungkai Holdings
Limited ('Sungkai') at a cost of £766,860. The total net funds raised by
Sungkai amounted to £1,601,820 and were substantially applied towards the
purchase of 1,960,000 Bertam shares at £1.50 per share.
In addition to the purchase of 2,560,000 Bertam shares, referred to
above, other members of the M. P. Evans grouping of companies acquired a
further 440,000 Bertam shares at £1.50 per share. The total of 3,000,000
Bertam shares acquired was sold by the Johor Corporation Group ('Johor').
Johor's remaining holding of 2,116,170 Bertam shares represents 10.01% of
Bertam's issued share capital.
Notwithstanding that the consideration of £1.50 per Bertam share
represents an approximate 62% premium over Bertam's current mid-market
price of 92.5 pence per share, the transaction will serve to enhance the
asset value of the Company as the consideration represents an approximate
25% discount to the last-published net asset value as shown by the 1999
interim report of Bertam of £1.99 per share.
Further to this transaction, the board understands that those members of
the M.P.Evans grouping with Malaysian plantation interests, namely
Bertam, Beradin Holdings PLC, Padang Senang Holdings PLC and The
Singapore Para Rubber Estates, PLC intend to review their corporate
structure. This may lead to their amalgamation.
By order of the board
M.P.Evans (UK) Limited
Secretaries
28 February 2000
Enquiries: Mr P E Hadsley-Chaplin
Telephone: 01892 516333
Fax: 01892 518639
E-Mail: peterhc@mpevans.co.uk
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