Merger will boost Australian Renewable Fuels

Australian biodiesel provider Australian Renewable Fuels (ARF) will be injected with AU$14 million (€11.2 million) in capital after a proposed merger agreement with Wentworth Holdings.

ARF will make an offer for all outstanding Wentworth shares, a recommendation allegedly backed unanimously by Wentworth directors.

‘The cash injection will strengthen our balance sheet and fund working capital and strategic growth plans,’ ARF MD Andrew White was quoted as saying. ‘This proposed merger enhances our financial capabilities, particularly as biodiesel facilities and sales contracts come online for Picton and Largs Bay. These sales contracts, together with the introduction of low-grade feedstocks including waste vegetable oils from throughout Asia, require working capital that will now be available.’

The merger will be implemented by way of an off-market takeover of Wentworth by ARF.

‘We are delighted to be merging with an emerging, asset rich, listed company with strong management, plus strategic objectives and a growth strategy,” adds Wentworth chairman Vaughan Webber. “For our shareholders, this merger delivers not only exposure to a growth business but enhanced liquidity and genuine potential for share price appreciation.’