Suzlon in back seat as German wind firm commends takeover by French

Mar 20, 2007, 18:27 GMT

Hamburg - In a new blow to a takeover offer from Indian wind-energy engineer Suzlon, Germany's REpower wind-generator group advised shareholders Tuesday to accept a higher bid from French nuclear conglomerate Areva.

Suzlon and Areva have been locked in a takeover battle that has sent the value of Hamburg-based REpower soaring to more than 1.1 billion euros (1.4 billion dollars).

On Thursday, Areva trumped Suzlon's 126-euro-per-share bid with a squeeze-out offer of 140 euros. Areva has expanded its stake to more than 30 per cent of REpower and under sharemarket rules must offer all remaining shareholders the top price.

The management and board of REpower Systems said Tuesday they regarded Areva as a suitable strategic partner in accelerated growth for the international wind-energy industry.

However, a REpower spokesman said later the German company 'could live very well' with takeover by either suitor and it was perfectly possible that the Indian company would raise its bid, in which case the board might switch its support to Suzlon.

The REpower spokesman said a fresh bid from Suzlon was not currently on the table. The old bid runs till April 20.

The German company also announced Tuesday a new equity issue, saying it needed bridging finance for a major European offshore project. It was in advanced negotiations with a customer and if it gained the contract would need the money till the customer paid.

REpower said existing shareholders would be offered 811,799 new shares at 136 euros apiece from next Monday but there were no plans to make options on the new shares tradeable.

Suzlon, a major Indian builder of wind generators, teamed up with Martifer, a Portuguese shareholder in REpower, to make its earlier unsolicited takeover offer. REpower previously praised a lower offer from Areva, which builds France's nuclear power reactors.

Analysts say the bids exceed REpower's fundamental value, but reflect Suzlon's desire to become a world leader in the industry and Areva's strategic need to reposition itself as a broad provider of carbon-dioxide-free energy-generating systems.