AGL sells Santos holding
NZPA-AAP Sydney The Australian Gas Light Company has sold its stake in Ross Adler’s Santos for sAusts7.s million (SNZ77.7M) in a bid to strengthen company finances following the abortive attempt to dispose of its majority holding in Paringa Mining and Exploration Company.
Its investment in the energy giant, Santos, has been whittled over the past two years to about 9 per cent from the maximum 15% allowed under South Australian Government legislation. The director and chief executive of AGL, Mr Maurice Williams, said the company had no plans for the rest of the holding. “We have been gradually unwinding our holding since. May this year, but it has been a very gradual process,” he said.
“This in no way indicates dissatisfaction with Santos, but we saw the opportunity to make a profit and we were very happy with the price we achieved,” Mr Williams said.
Part of the proceeds would go towards reducing debt while other cash had been channelled into a purchase of an unspecified quantity of CSR shares. AGL bought up to the 15% limit late in 1987 and at that stage its chairman, Mr Jack Davenport, described the stake as being “of prime strategic importance.” Earlier this year, the Santos holding was reduced to 12.07% through a series of on-market sales. In the latest move, 12.47 M of the outstanding 48.27 M shares were disposed of between May and August at prices between $3.44 and $4.01. A parcel of 832,000 shares arising from exercised options was also sold. Santos shares jumped 18c to 430 in the Australian stock market on Monday. AGL rose 1c to 208. Mr Williams said he believed a spread of institutions had snapped up the shares.
AGL suffered a serious setback in May when Hartogen Energy was forced to pull out of the deal to purchase its 54% holding in Paringa for sAustlO9M (SNZI4O.BM) because it could not make the repayments. Hartogen was then placed into provisional liquidation. Analysts believe the decision to sell the Santos stake may have been prompted by the Paringa debacle and a possible cash shortage
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Press, 30 August 1989, Page 40
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351AGL sells Santos holding Press, 30 August 1989, Page 40
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