JSE-listed coal miner Wescoal has advised that RBFT Investments has extended the timeframe of its offer to increase its shareholding in the company from 56.87% to 85%.
RBFT is a consortium that has the Industrial Development Corporation and Simeka Capital Holdings among its investors.
RBFT last month said in a statement published on InceConnect, through the JSE, that it would, from February 16 to 26 place bids to buy up to 116-million shares in Wescoal for R1.20 apiece, equal to about R134-million.
Since the bid opened, RBFT has acquired about 33.58-million Wescoal shares, increasing its holdings to 64.87%.
The R1.20 bid offer per Wescoal share will remain open until March 5, or such time as the maximum number has been acquired.
Wescoal has been plagued with lower offtake from its main customer, Eskom, ever since the start of the hard lockdown in South Africa in March last year.
The company’s inventory levels had more than doubled to around R280-million in the six months following March, which has affected its cash flows.
Wescoal generated R11-million in profit in the six months ended September 30, 2020, recovering from a R51-million loss reported for the prior corresponding six months.
The company was in 2019 impacted by production issues at its Vanggatfontein colliery, near Delmas, owing to protests by employees after a new mining contractor was appointed.
Nevertheless, RBFT said it remains “extremely confident” in the prospects of Wescoal.