Seacem offers to buy back shares

MANILA, Philippines - Southeast Asia Cement Holdings Inc. has offered to buy back up to 93 percent of its shares held by the public.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange, Seacem said it would conduct a tender offer for 989.338 million shares held by its public shareholders, who in return, will receive shares in Lafarge.

Seacem shall give one Lafarge share plus cash of up to P0.028 for every 3.73 Seacem shares acquired.

The tender offer will run from Oct. 12 to Nov. 14.

The proposed transaction is part of efforts to help subsidiary Lafarge meet the minimum public ownership requirement of 10 percent. Lafarge currently has a public float of only 3.67 percent.

Errant companies have until the end of the year to comply with the minimum public ownership level. Failure to do so shall result in the suspension of trading of their shares for up to six months beginning the first trading day next year.

After the lapse of the suspension period, they will automatically be delisted from the local bourse unless they have by then complied with the requirement.

Lafarge, formerly Republic Cement Corp., was incorporated in May 3, 1955 to primarily engage in the manufacture and sale of cement, marble and all other kinds and classes of building materials. Its plants are located in Bulacan, Batangas and Rizal.

Among its subsidiaries are Iligan Cement, Fortune Cement, FR Cement, Lloyds Richfield Industrial Corporation and Mindanao Portland Cement.