STRIKE Energy has folded, accepting Hancock Energy’s competing cash offer for its 26% holding of Warrego Energy and jettisoning its own attempted all paper takeover of its West Erregulla gas field partner. The two have been competing for control of Warrego and its 50% share of the onshore Perth Basin field since November.
Australia’s richest person, said to be worth $34 billion, will hand $100,000 each to 41 lucky workers at her company, Hancock Prospecting, to mark her 41 years at the firmMrs Rinehart has been paying out bonuses worth many tens of thousands of dollars a year on top of some of the highest wages in Australia to Roy Hill workers in the countdown to Christmas since 2018. She first flagged sharing profits (something like 5 per cent) from Roy Hill with workers during a speech during the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Perth in 2011 and long before the mine started shipping iron ore. Similar incentives and profit-sharing schemes apply across the rest of the Hancock business empire but are more discretionary.
Forty-one lucky employees of Hancock Prospecting will be receiving a cash bonus of $100,000 as executive chairman Gina Rinehart prepares another raffle this week.The massive bonus comes as Rinehart marks her 41 years at Hancock, as well as her 69th birthday on Thursday, news.com.au reported.Former Roy Hill CEO Barry Fitzgerald said the scheme is a “tremendous example” of Rinehart’s generosity and appreciation of staff. “The Chairman’s Profit Scheme means that everybody’s joint efforts pay off, with our people genuinely engaged with driving the performance of our operations and business,” he said in a statement. “The scheme creates a unique opportunity for our staff to drive performance at Roy Hill and participate in the profitability of this Great West Australian mining operation and company.”
Australia’s richest person Gina Rinehart will hand out another $4.1million in bonuses to employees of her mining company as she marks 41 years at the firm. Ms Rinehart will give 41 Hancock Prospecting staff members $100,000 each this week, with a raffle to determine the lucky recipients. Rinehart has thanked her workers for ‘another great year’ and said all of Australia benefits when her mine thrives.
Gina Rinehart, the nation’s richest person, has become the controlling shareholder of West Australian junior gas producer Warrego Energy as a months-long takeover battle for the company continues. In a message to Warrego shareholders yesterday, Rinehart’s Hancock Energy said Strike’s scrip offer “likely delivers an inferior outcome to Warrego shareholders in all cases”. The statement said Hancock expected the stock prices of Strike and Warrego to continue to decline below 36 a share and to probably “decline significantly once Hancock’s offer closes”. “Warrego shareholders should not do nothing and retain their Warrego shares because any remaining minority shareholders may face significantly reduced trading liquidity and may have difficulty realising an equivalent cash value for their shares,” it said.
“Hancock considers any prospect of a new competitor takeover offer for Warrego is negligible, particularly given Hancock has become Warrego’s controlling shareholder,” Hancock said. “Hancock considers current share prices of Strike and Warrego are largely being supported by Hancock’s offer, with their prices rising in step with Hancock’s key announcements over the past two months. Now that Hancock has become Warrego’s controlling shareholder, and Strike has confirmed its scrip offer is its ‘best and final’ offer, Hancock expects Strike’s and Warrego’s share prices to continue to fall below 36c and will likely further decline significantly once Hancock’s offer closes.” Hancock also warned that Warrego shareholders who hung on to their shares might face “significantly reduced trading liquidity and may have difficulty realising an equivalent cash value for their shares’’.
Hancock’s 26 cents per share offer ticked over the required minimum 40 per cent mark at the weekend to give the group a 45.63 per cent position in Warrego Energy. The company is on track to secure a further 4.92 per cent from acceptances that have not yet ticked over, which would give Hancock a 50 per cent stake in the target and make it Warrego’s biggest shareholder. It also means Hancock’s offer is now unconditional.
Gina Rinehart-owned Hancock Energy said on Monday that its updated A$0.36 per share offer for Australia’s Warrego Energy (WGO) , which valued the oil and gas explorer at A$440 million ($304 million) has received the minimum required 40% approval from Warrego shareholders. As a result, all Warrego shareholders who accepted Hancock’s offer will now receive A$0.36 cash per share, regardless of when they accepted the offer, said Hancock. Warrego, which holds the West Erregulla gas fields in North Perth Basin in Western Australia, has been at the center of M&A battles, attracting offers from players such as Beach Energy (BPT) , Strike Energy (STX) and Hancock Energy. Hancock said that it is now the controlling shareholder of Warrego, holding more than 50% of all Warrego shares.
Gina Rinehart’s Hancock has become Warrego’s controlling shareholder, effectively ending a months-long battle with Strike Energy for control of the company. “Now that Hancock has become Warrego’s controlling shareholder, and Strike has confirmed its scrip offer is its “best and final” offer, Hancock expects Strike’s and Warrego’s share prices to continue to fall below 36c and will likely further decline significantly once Hancock’s offer closes .”Hancock said its officer was automatically extended and will remain open for acceptance until 7pm AEDT on February 24.
Australia’s richest person, Gina Rinehart, has further expanded her empire with the acquisition of a 14-storey office building in Queensland. “A building refurbishment program is planned, which will reposition the building and ensure it is a highly attractive location for businesses and visitors,” her company Hancock Prospecting said in a statement. “The acquisition of this property by Hancock is a continuation of its investment in Queensland, where Hancock has extensive investments in energy via Senex, its joint venture with POSCO, along with extensive agricultural operations and a growing Brisbane office.”
