The Johannesburg High Court ruled on Friday that mining company Harmony’s multibillion-rand hostile takeover bid for Gold Fields lapsed on December 18 last year, effectively ending the bid seven months after it started.
Gold Fields spokesperson Willie Jacobsz said the company feels vindicated by the court’s decision.
”The court ruled that the deal came to an end on December 18 last year,” he said. ”Gold Fields has contended this throughout the bid. We feel this vindicates the company.”
The ruling means that any shares tendered after December 18 will have to go back to Gold Fields shareholders.
Harmony, the world’s sixth-biggest gold producer, has acquired 11,8% of Gold Fields’ shares. It wanted to buy Gold Fields to become the world’s largest gold producer.
Harmony’s bid was valued at more than $7,5-billion (about R48-billion) when it was made in October, but both companies have incurred heavy costs in fighting the bid and the deal has almost halved in value.
Gold Fields traded at R94,61 when the deal started and was at R63,81 late on Thursday — a 32,12% loss in value.
Harmony traded at R83,50 when it made the bid and was at R43 on Friday — a 48% loss in value.
Gold Fields said the entire bid has cost both companies more than R30-billion.
The company had set noon on Friday as its deadline for finalising the bid.
Harmony is still to comment on the court’s decision.
Business Day newspaper reported on Friday that Harmony chief executive Bernard Swanepoel would abandon the bid as the costs on his company mounted.
”We won’t own or continue to own those shares simply to irritate Gold Fields management,” he told the newspaper. — Sapa