British Energy decides to delist
AROUND 230,000 last-generation 'Sid' investors look set to be all but wiped out after British Energy took the nuclear option and said it is to delist its shares.
Under unparalleled attack from US hedge fund Polygon and institutional shareholder Brandes, BE said it had no choice but to railroad through its restructuring and leave the stock market.
Shares in BE, the final major privatisation of the last Conservative Government, are set to be delisted on 21 October. After a Marconi-style reconstruction, it aims then to relist a reconstituted BE by the end of next January.
The nuclear generator, the largest producer of electricity for the UK market, said that unless investors agreed to a £1.5bn debt-for-equity swap, leaving current shareholders with just 2.5% of the company, creditors and bondholders are likely to put it into administration.
But Polygon immediately hit back, saying it still plans to force an extraordinary meeting to get the delisting plan ruled illegal and to reverse the board's proposed restructuring.
'We are astounded the company has shown this complete disregard for shareholders,' said a Polygon spokesman.
Polygon says existing shareholders will miss out on recovery in the electricity market because of the restructuring, which only yesterday got the green light from the European Union.
BE shares, which had recently touched 24 3/4p on hopes that existing shareholders would get a better deal, plunged 5 1/4p to 13p.