APT bids to facilitate other ACCC undertaking: Alinta clarifies

Alinta's efforts to acquire an additional stake in the Australian Pipeline Trust earlier this year were in order to facilitate another undertaking to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, the Perth energy company announced today.

Both the APT, the ACCC and the Takeovers Panel have since rejected Alinta's attempts to acquire a further shareholding in the company.

The full text of a company announcement is pasted below

The ACCC has drawn to Alinta's attention to a statement made at the recent Alinta Scheme meeting in relation to Alinta's interest in APT.

At the meeting, and in a subsequent interview, Alinta made a statement that "Alinta's objective in this case was to obtain a controlling stake in APT in order to comply with the undertakings".

The ACCC is concerned that this statement is misleading.

To clarify the position:

• Alinta will acquire 100% of AGL (which currently holds a 26% interest in APT) pursuant to the AGL Scheme of Arrangement approved by AGL shareholders and subsequently by the Court on 9 October 2006.
• In mid-August, Alinta acquired a further 10.2% interest in APT.
• Although Alinta has entered into a formal undertaking with the ACCC on 3 August 2006, which requires Alinta to divest all of its holding in APT by a confidential date in the future, Alinta has been engaged with the ACCC for some time in seeking to enter into a further undertaking which would permit Alinta to retain its interest in APT if APT no longer held an interest in specified assets, including the Moomba-Sydney pipeline and the Parmelia pipeline.
• Alinta is yet to conclude those discussions with the ACCC - they are continuing. Alinta hopes to conclude those discussions in the near future.
• The statement to which the ACCC has referred, and which it considers to be misleading, was intended to refer to these circumstances, in the sense that Alinta is endeavouring to comply with the ACCC's concerns.

For the avoidance of doubt, Alinta wishes to clarify the position. It acquired the further units in APT on the basis that it would conclude a further, revised undertaking with the ACCC which would permit Alinta to retain its interest in APT, if APT ceased to hold interests in the MSP and Parmelia pipeline. A draft undertaking to that effect had been provided to the ACCC by Alinta. The ACCC published that draft undertaking on its website for public comment on 8 September 2006.

It is however not the case that any undertakings given to, and accepted by the ACCC, require Alinta to acquire any interest in APT.