DJ TCC Assets Extends Offer Deadline for Fraser & Neave to Jan 10


By P.R. Venkat

SINGAPORE--Thai billionaire Charoen Sirivadhanabhakdi Wednesday extended again the deadline for his US$7.2 billion offer for Singapore's Fraser & Neave Ltd. (F99.SG), which has been trumped by a bid from one of Indonesia's richest families.

Mr. Charoen's offer of 8.88 Singapore dollars (US$7.27) for each Fraser & Neave share that he doesn't already own, made through his unlisted investment vehicle TCC Assets, will now close on Jan. 10, TCC said in a filing to the Singapore Exchange. The offer price is the same.

The offer, first made in September, was to have closed Wednesday and this extension is the fifth time that TCC has pushed back the deadline.

Mr. Charoen currently owns a third of Fraser & Neave, a real-estate and soft-drinks company.

Overseas Union Enterprise Ltd. (LJ3.SG), owned by Indonesia's Riady family, made a S$9.08 a share bid for Fraser & Neave in November, raising the specter of a bidding war. The US$10.6 billion offer led by OUE, a Singapore-based property developer, expires Thursday.

The board of Fraser & Neave has reacted coolly to both the offers, saying they weren't compelling even though they were fair.