Balfour Beatty is poised to reject a third merger offer from Carillion as hopes for the creation of a £3 billion construction “powerhouse” fade.
Sources said the construction group headed by Steve Marshall, the under-fire chairman, is likely to reject Carillion’s offer as the new proposal failed to address Balfour’s two key concerns regarding the sale of its Parsons Brinckerhoff unit and the credibility of Carillion’s assumptions on cost savings.
Yesterday, Carillion offered Balfour shareholders a 58.3 per cent equity share in the enlarged group, up from its initial 56.5 per cent offer three weeks ago. It said it would also pay an additional cash dividend of 8½p a share, which equates to £59 million.
The new proposal values Balfour Beatty at slightly more than