Freightways on track for sale

By DANIEL RIORDAN

Several parties are expected to bid for Freightways Express by today's cut-off date for the sale of the listed courier and freight delivery company.

Freightways' parent, Melbourne-based Ausdoc Group, in December put itself, its New Zealand subsidiary and its Australian subsidiaries up for sale - as a whole or in parts - after global investment bank Babcock & Brown threatened to take over Ausdoc and break it up.

Babcock & Brown, which owns 5 per cent of Ausdoc but claimed support from shareholders owning close to 50 per cent of the company, was planning to seize board control at a special meeting on February 18.

That meeting was cancelled this week after the warring factions called a truce, under which Babcock & Brown will have two directors on Ausdoc's board and agree to drop court action against Ausdoc's directors. The sale process is continuing, however.

Australian media reports suggest interest from more than 30 parties in all or parts of the group.

Freightways managing director Dean Bracewell said there had been "healthy interest" in the company, but he declined to be specific.

Good sense had prevailed across the Tasman, he said.

"We now have a board with a common goal - the sale of the group - and that's got to be positive for Ausdoc and positive for Freightways."

A shortlist will be chosen from the non-binding bids due today, with due diligence next. Mr Bracewell did not expect the process to be protracted.

Ausdoc owns all of Freightways' ordinary shares but about 1500 New Zealanders own preference shares that are listed on the stock exchange.

Freightways has about 1000 full-time staff and uses about as many independent contractors. Its main business units are NZ Couriers and Post Haste.