SMRT - Temasek Considers Taking Subway Operator SMRT Private

Updated on Wednesday, 20 July 2016, 7.00 pm

Temasek Holdings' unit Belford Investments has proposed a buyout of transport operator SMRT Corp at S$1.68 a share, in a deal that values the firm at S$2.57 billion.

The exit offer at S$1.68 per share is a 8.7 per cent premium over SMRT's last traded price of S$1.545.

(Source:  Business Times)

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From Dow Jones Singapore -


DJ Singapore - ''Temasek Considers Taking Subway Operator SMRT Private"
(2016/07/18 12:58PM)

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By P.R. Venkat

SINGAPORE--State investment firm Temasek Holdings Pte. Ltd. is considering an offer to buy the remaining shares that it doesn't already own in Singapore-listed transport firm SMRT Corp., people familiar with the situation said Monday.

Temasek, which has a 54% stake in SMRT, plans to delist the company, which currently has a market capitalization of 2.4 billion Singapore dollars (US$1.78 billion), these people said.

Temasek's buyout plan comes days after the government announced a deal to take ownership of SMRT's train assets, leaving SMRT to focus on the operations and maintenance of the network. That deal is valued at S$1.1 billion, most of which would be used to repay SMRT's debt. SMRT said it doesn't intend to pay any dividends to its shareholders after the sale of the train assets.

SMRT's reputation took a major hit in December 2011 when its subway lines suffered two major breakdowns that left more than 210,000 commuters stranded.

The disruptions were the worst in the network's history, prompting public outrage, criticism of the company's wide-ranging interests, as well as a rare government inquiry--a reflection of how seriously Singapore takes its record of orderliness and efficiency.

Write to P.R. Venkat at venkat.pr@wsj.com



(END) Dow Jones Newswires

July 18, 2016 00:58 ET (04:58 GMT)

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