Australia’s Far receives takeover proposal from Remus Horizons

Australian oil and gas explorer Far has received a takeover proposal from Remus Horizons, a private investment fund regulated by the Guernsey Financial Services Commission.

The conditional non-binding indicative proposal calls for further discussions to explore its capacity for making an offer to acquire all shares of Far at 2.1 Australian cents per share.

According to a Reuters report, the all-cash takeover proposal will value A$209.6m ($159.15m). Remus plans to fund the acquisition through internal fund reserves.

Far said in a statement: “Far cautions that the proposal is not a legally binding offer, there is no certainty that the proposal will necessarily eventuate, and that the proposal terms are uncertain at this stage. Accordingly, care needs to be used in assessing the proposal.”

The proposal comes at a time when the oil and gas industry is working to recover from the impact of Covid-19, which dampened crude demand and prices.

Cash-starved Far, also agreed to exit an offshore project in Senegal last month to strengthen its balance sheet and support other West African prospects.

Additionally, Remus is ready to hold talks for award a loan of up to $50m from the date of any binding offer to enable the company in meeting funding calls and other working capital requirements.

Following the offer, Far deferred its shareholder meeting by a month to 21 January 2021.

“This will enable further time for FAR and its shareholders to be able to obtain further information in relation to the proposal and assess the relative merits of the sale alternative and the proposal. FAR will in due course distribute updated meeting information in this regard,” the statement added.