NEW YORK—Clico and CL Financial yesterday made offers to sell their shares in Methanol Holdings (Trinidad) Ltd (MHTL) to Consolidated Energy Ltd (CEL), the minority shareholder of the methanol company, in keeping with the 14-day deadline to do so by the Court of Arbitration's award, a source with knowledge of the matter told the T&T Guardian. The three-member arbitration tribunal, which had been sitting on the shareholder oppression matter brought by CEL since May 2011, directed Clico and CL Financial to make an offer to CEL within 14 days of September 11.
The combined offer amounts to US$1.175 billion (TT$7.5 billion), which was the value of Clico and CL Financial's stake in MHTL arrived at by the arbitration.
Clico made an offer to the minority shareholders for the 49.9 per cent stake in MHTL that it owns, while CL Financial made an offer for the 7.53 per cent stake in the methanol company of which the group, which was founded by Lawrence Duprey, is the legal owner. A source explained that Clico has "beneficial interest" in CL Financial's 7.53 per cent stake in MHTL but that legal title for the shares remained with CL Financial. "This was why the tribunal issued separate orders for offer," said the official.
Clico's offer to CEL was signed by the insurance company's managing director Carolyn John, while it could not be ascertained who signed on behalf of CL Financial. The Central Bank, which controls Clico under section 44D of the Central Bank Act, gave its approval for the Clico offer. Asked whether a legal challenge by the CL Financial shareholders to the offers was expected, the source said: "No. They have made their offer. One would assume that the decision to make the offer was supported by the shareholders of CL Financial, that they would have had a board meeting and taken a decision."
There were suggestions from CL Financial sources that the group would challenge the Central Bank's decision to suggest to Clico that the insurance company's interests would be best served by complying with the arbitration award. CEL has 14 days in which to accept the offer made by Clico and CL Financial, which they are likely to do, according to the source.