The Irish Takeover Panel has set a deadline of July 15th for Precinct to make an offer for Jurys Doyle or walk away from its attempt to take over the hotel group.
In a statement released late yesterday, the panel said the consortium of investors must either announce an offer for Jurys Doyle by 5pm on that date or announce that it will not proceed with an offer.
The panel's ruling followed representations from Jurys Doyle and its advisers, who are understood to have requested a deadline given that the first approach was made two months ago.
A spokesman for Precinct said only that the consortium was still considering its response.
Precinct, which is headed by property developer Bryan Cullen and also includes solicitor David Coleman and builder and hotelier JJ Murphy, has already made two approaches to the hotel group, both of which have been rebuffed. Its first approach in early May was pitched at €15.25 per share.
However, this approach was rejected by the board of Jurys because it failed to "fully reflect the value in the company".
In early June, Precinct made a second approach at a price of €16.25 per share, putting a value of a little more than €1 billion on the hotel group.
But this too was rejected by the Jurys board on the grounds of valuation and because it involved a number of preconditions Jurys felt could not be met.
Instead, the board of Jurys announced plans to shut down two of its three flagship hotels in Ballsbridge, while demolishing and redeveloping the third, the Berkeley Court, as a four-star hotel. At least 600 jobs are expected to go in the move, which would also see the group sell off five acres of the most valuable development land in Dublin, generating enormous interest among leading builders.
Gaining control of this site, which is estimated to be worth some €200 million, is thought to be a key element in Precinct's interest in Jurys Doyle.
The consortium is not expected to launch a hostile bid for the hotel group, given that 30 per cent of the company is controlled by members of the Doyle and Beatty families.
But market sources believe that Precinct will have to offer at least €16.50 if it is to have any hope of success in its bid to take control of the company and its valuable lands. If Precinct does not table an offer by the July deadline, it will be barred under Takeover Panel rules from making a fresh approach for Jurys for a 12-month period.
Shares in Jurys, which has 33 properties in Ireland, Britain and the US, closed at €15.25 last night, down 10 cent on the day.
