M&R CEO Henry Laas
Photo by: Creamer Media
Shareholders in South Africa’s Murray & Roberts voted on Tuesday for the company to look into a potential tie up with construction rival Aveng, sending Aveng's shares around 25% higher.
The resolution got the backing of 52.06% of votes at the Murray & Roberts' (M&R) annual shareholder meeting.
M&R and Aveng announced the potential merger in May, saying it would create scale in M&R’s key markets such as Australasia and Africa, while shoring up liquidity in loss-making Aveng in the near term.
"We are obviously very pleased with the way the voting went this morning. It is a demonstration of shareholder democracy," M&R CE Henry Laas told the media after the meeting.
The board of M&R will now move to finalise the terms of the proposed offer with the board of Aveng and then present a formal offer.