Eleia’ s £390m bid wins port firm auction

Afierce bidding war to acquire Port of Dundee firm Augean has ended with a £390 million bid at auction.

Hazardous waste firm Augean has been fought over by a subsidiary of banking giant Morgan Stanley and Eleia.

Augean brought the first major decommissioning project to Dundee.

It worked on the prominent Shell Curlew decommissioning project at Port of Dundee for more than a year.

Shell cut more than a third of its North Sea Services workforce last year.

Augean also has four sites in Aberdeen as well as a Peterhead facility.

It operates across the hazardous waste management, oil and gas, nuclear and radioactive sectors and has its headquarters in Wetherby.

After bids and counter bids stretching all the way back to May, it was decided last week to hold an auction.

Eleia was successful with its offer of 372 pence per share, valuing Augean at about £390m.

Morgan Stanley Infrastructure Partner (MSIP) failed with its increased offer of 361 pence a share.

The Augean board said the increased offer from Eleia was an “excellent outcome” for shareholders.

The deal will be funded by a combination of equity and debt.

A general meeting of shareholders to accept the deal is due to be held the week of October 11.

If passed, Augean will subsequently stop trading on the London Stock Exchange.

Augean shares nudged up 1% to 371 pence in early trading figures published yesterday.

The bidding action started in May when MSIP made an offer worth around £300m for Augean.

Eleia – a special purpose vehicle formed by investment funds managed by Ancala Partners and Fiera Infrastructure of Canada – entered the race with a £341m offer in August.

Earlier this month, Morgan Stanley put forward an improved offer of £356m.

But with neither suitor declaring their bid final, the auction process was announced.

“Earlier this month, Morgan Stanley put forward an improved offer of £356m

SOLD: Banking giant Morgan Stanley was unsuccessful in its bid for Augean.