Canadian Overseas Packaging Industries Limited (Copil) has secured a 91.99 percent shareholder acceptance to take over full ownership of East African Packaging Industries Limited (EAPI), the firm said, further revealing that it has commenced steps to acquire the remaining 8.01 percent stake compulsorily.
Copil, the majority owner of EAPI with a 92.1 percent stake, first announced the fresh bid to take over the minority shareholding in April this year, rekindling the interest that was initially made public in 2003.
Company secretary David Eramian said the multinational firm has issued private notices to the non-assenting shareholders on its compulsory acquisition plans.
“Notice is given by Copil (the offeror) in respect of the proposed acquisition of up to 100 percent of the issued ordinary shares in the share capital of EAPI, that the offeror has received 91.99 percent acceptances in respect to the offer,” reads the communiqué in part.
Last April, the multinational said a letter of offer had been dispatched by post mail to all of EAPI’s shareholders, except 29 whose active addresses could not be traced.
The original deal, which was advised by Kaplan and Stratton advocates, saw EAPI delist from the Nairobi Securities Exchange over two decades ago. At the time, a sizeable chunk of the minority shareholders, whose total stood at 242, either declined the offer or failed to respond.
The bid saw Copil raise its stake in EAPI to 92.1 percent up from the 75 percent it had previously held.
The multinational would later, in December 2010, make a second offer to buy the minority shareholders who by now stood at 132 and held 98,182 shares.
EAPI makes packaging materials for firms such as cement makers and horticultural producers.
COPIL, the partner firm, has interests in the UK and also owns Caribbean Packaging Industries in Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica Packaging Industries and Paper Processors Limited in Jamaica, as well as a distribution operation in Barbados dubbed Barbados Packaging Industries.
According to EAPI’s last annual report published for the period ended June 2002, the company had 7,680,000 ordinary shares in issue, Sh954 million in assets, and 310 employees.
