Boom chief executive Brenden Mitchell told ConstructionIndustryNews.net yesterday that Harbrew had made a “very conditional offer” for the company, which was rejected by the board. The offer was for 100% of Boom shares at A60c per share in cash. Boom said in a statement last week that the proposal represented a 6% premium to the one-month volume-weighted average price of 57c prior to the approach. Earlier this month, Boom shares fell to below 50c and have continued to fall to around 41c. The board rejected the proposal because it was “highly conditional and incomplete compared to the certainty of an underwritten equity raising”.Boom said the board did not consider that it would credibly deliver value or certainty to shareholders.Mitchell said the rejected offer had not been followed up by Harbrew and Boom would proceed with its capital raising. “It was more an effort to stop the equity raising than anything else, that would be my view, but it [Harbrew] wasn’t able to achieve that,” he said.“There is an equity raising going and no bona fide takeover offer on the table.”This is not the first time Harbrew has approached Boom. According to Boom, in July Harbrew proposed an unsolicited merger in which Boom would acquire Harbrew. Boom said that proposal did not meet the company’s “investment criteria”.Mitchell said the 30c per share equity raising would be completed just prior to Christmas and the company would then proceed with a share purchase plan to raise a further $20 million.
