HELSINKI (Reuters) - French industrial equipment supplier Loxam SAS announced on Monday a recommended public cash tender offer for all shares in Finland's Ramirent at 9 euros per share, a 65% premium in comparison with Friday's closing price.
The offer by the Bretagne-based private company values the Finnish machinery rental company at 970 million euros (£863 million), after Ramirent's shares lost over 40% of their value in a year in the Helsinki stock exchange.
Over the past 10 years, Loxam has converted itself into Europe's largest player in the equipment rental market for construction and industries.
In 2017, Loxam acquired its UK-based rival Lavendon Group after a bid battle against Belgian equipment supplier TVH Group.
"The acquisition of Ramirent will allow Loxam to establish a leading presence in a number of attractive markets in the Nordics and in Eastern Europe, thereby reshaping the European industry landscape by creating a pan-European equipment rental leader," Ramirent said in a statement.
Founded in 1967, Loxam had around 8,000 employees and a turnover of 1.4 billion euros last year, whereas Finland's Ramirent employed some 2,900 people and its revenue stood slightly above 700 million euros.
(Reporting by Anne Kauranen in Helsinki and Johannes Hellstrom in Stockholm.)
