Babcock & Brown Japan Property Trust
(ASX:BJT) has slashed the value of its property portfolio by 13.3 per cent.
The Trusts portfolio as at June 30 was valued at $1.6 billion.
Senior adviser to the board, Eric Lucas, says challenging economic conditions in Japan in the first half of 2009, including the worst gross domestic product number in over 50 years, has translated into valuers applying higher average capitalisation rates and lower assumed cash flows to the portfolio.
However the company says despite the soft operating environment, the trusts portfolio is approximately 94 per cent occupied by income as at June 30 2009, only slightly down from 96 per cent as at December 31 2008.
Babcock & Brown Japan Property Trust says even after these revaluations, the trust remains in compliance with both of its gearing ratio covenants.
Babcock & Brown Japan Property Trust’s 2008 net profit dipped slightly from the year before.
Energy company Arrow Energy Ltd (ASX:AOE) says Shell CSG has decided to exercise its right to take up a share of the Tipton West assets recently Acquired by Arrow Energy from Beach Petroleum.
Arrow says Shell will pay the company $99 million for a 12 per cent stake in the Tipton West joint venture and in addition will also reimburse Arrow for 30 per cent of any contingent payments that Arrow makes to Beach up to $21 million.
On completion of the transaction, ownership of the Tipton West joint venture will be 70 per cent Arrow and 30 per cent Shell.
Arrow says the deal is subject to corporate, third party and regulatory approvals.
Arrow Energy has posted net profits in the last two years after losses the three years previous.
Engineering company GRD Ltd (ASX:GRD) has recommended shareholders vote in favour of a proposed $106 million takeover offer from U.K. based AMEC.
Under the offer GRD shareholders will receive 55 cents a share.
The offer represents a 34 per cent premium to GRD’s closing price of 41 cents a share on June 10, the last trading day before the AMEC offer.
Chairman Richard Court says the GRD Board believes the offer represents a good opportunity for GRD shareholders to realize value and secure an attractive premium in an uncertain market environment.
AMEC is a supplier of high-value consultancy, engineering and project management services to the world’s energy, power and process industries.
GRD CEO Cliff Lawrence says AMEC is very well positioned to continue the development of GRDrealise. GRD posted a $62.2 million loss in 2008.
