The board of Spacecom Satellite Communications Ltd. (TASE:SCC) today rejected the offer of SES SA (Euronext; Luxembourg: SESG) to buy most of the company's assets in cash or through a merger. SES offered Spacecom NIS 51.50 per share, 11.5% more than an offer by Spacecom shareholder Eurocom Group. The board was not satisfied with the offer price.
Eurocom owner Shaul Alovitz and his son Or Alovitz are both Spacecom directors. They did not participate in the board meeting that discussed the SES offer.
SES's offer was based on the value of assets to be purchased of up to $350 million. SES did not include Spacecom's Amos 4 satellite, which is under construction, in its offer. Although SES submitted its offer on January 22, Spacecom's shareholders did not see it until today. Spacecom disclosed some details on Monday at the order of the Israel Securities Authority in response to an article in "Globes".
Prisma Investment House analyst Meir Slater believes that Spacecom was justified in rejecting the offer, "because the purchase of the Amos 1, 2, and 3 satellites, together with their orbit point rights, and the company's contracts with customers for its satellite communications services, would jeopardize Spacecom's very existence."
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on February 12, 2008
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