The Saverys family’s Compagnie Maritime Belge (CMB) has further bolstered its position in Euronav as it looks to stall Norwegian magnate John Fredriksen from taking control of the tanker giant and moving forward with its merger with Frontline.
Earlier this month, the Saverys’ purchased around 2.5m shares in Euronav for $50.4m, taking their stake in the Antwerp-based owner to 23.99%.
The fight for Euronav has been active since April when Fredriksen-controlled Frontline initiated a merger plan in a stock-for-stock deal despite opposition from the Saverys family, which has controlled the company since 1997.
Frontline and Fredriksen investment vehicles, who have also in the meantime strengthened their position in Euronav, proposed a combination based on an exchange ratio of 1.45 Frontline shares for every one Euronav share, for which a definite deal was signed in July and approved by both companies boards.
CMB has been publicly opposing the deal while pressing for a combination with its hydrogen technology developer CMB Tech, also warning that the new structure would be dilutive to Euronav shareholders.
Although the two tanker players maintained that the merger plan was on track, the proposed move, which requires a 75% majority, has been delayed until next year. The plan for a combined group is to be named Frontline, incorporated and headquartered in Cyprus and listed in Brussels, Oslo and New York. Euronav boss Hugo De Stoop is expected to take the helm at the merged company, with Frontline CEO, Lars Barstad, joining the board.
However the merger saga plays out, Fredriksen is poised to cash in with the Euronav share price up by around 150% since his first investments were revealed in the tanker giant last year.
