EOH backs off from CS Holdings

By Iain Scott, ITWeb group consulting editor

Johannesburg, 15 Jun 2004

Enterprise Outsourcing Holdings (EOH) has told the CS Holdings (CSH) board that it will not proceed with an offer to buy the group.

EOH director Rob Sporen was in a meeting and could not immediately be reached for comment.

However, it seems that CSH may have another willing buyer.

In a related announcement on the JSE`s SENS news service, CSH said it had received a number of unsolicited approaches with regard to buying its shares or business.

"After due consideration the board is pleased to announce that they have nominated a preferred bidder and are currently in the process of agreeing the terms of the process for the finalisation of a transaction with such preferred bidder," it says in its SENS statement.

"A detailed announcement will be released on SENS and published in the press in due course."

EOH is the third potential bidder to walk away from CSH. Reunert, the first company to indicate that it wanted to make an offer, decided in mid-May, after EOH also stated it wanted to make an offer, not to go ahead.

UCS Group also said it wanted to make an offer for CSH, but later decided to back off.

The CSH share was trading at 25c by midmorning today, up 5c or 25% on yesterday`s close.