Biffa prepared to recommend private equity offer

Biffa has confirmed today that it is to open its books to Montagu Private Equity and Hg Pooled Management and that the group would be prepared to recommend an offer of 350 pence per share.

A new bid at 350p would value the group at £1.23bn and would represent a premium of 42.9% to the average share price in the three months prior to the announcement in November that Biffa had received an approach.

The UK waste management group received and rejected a 330 pence per share offer from the two groups back in November, having also rebuffed a previous approach in September.

Biffa said on Wednesday that on December 7 the indicative offer was lifted to 350p, a level which it said it was prepared to recommend. The offer remains conditional on the satisfactory completion of due diligence and Biffa said it was now prepared to give Montagu and Hg the information they require.