Future of Nail hangs in the balance
July 23, 2004
By Gugulakhe Masango
Johannesburg - The future of New Africa Investments Limited (Nail) will not be discussed at its annual general meeting on Monday, leaving minority shareholders guessing about what lies in store.
Kenny Setzin, Nail`s executive director, said yesterday that Nail`s board had not yet formulated its strategy and that this would be done in consultation with shareholders.
The strategy will be finalised after regulatory and other approvals for the sale of Nail`s stake in radio stations KFM, 94.7 Highveld Stereo and Jacaranda, and its holdings in Nail Outdoor and Radmark.
Primedia acquired New Africa Media Holdings for R209 million, giving its subsidiary Primedia Broadcasting a controlling stake.
The disposal of New Africa Publication`s 90.5 percent stake in subsidiary New Africa Media Holdings to Johncom, which owns the Sunday Times, has already been approved by the competition authorities.
Still for sale are the stakes in radio station Kaya FM, car rental business Hertz and a small interest in a film company.
Unitrans, which owns 40 percent of Hertz, is considering exercising its pre-emptive right to acquire the 60 percent of Hertz it does not own.
Setzin said: `We cannot remain as a cash shell company once the remaining assets are sold. The strategy certainly will be done in advance in consultation with the shareholders.`
He said there was no definitive time frame to sell the three remaining assets. `We are doing our level best to sell the assets,` although Nail expected to at least have received regulatory approval for the assets sold and concluded the disposal of the remaining assets by year-end.
Nail has released R870 million in cash back to its shareholders.
Nail is 95 percent controlled by a consortium that includes Mineworkers Investment Company, Investec Bank and Tiso Private Equity Fund. It is headed up by Fani Titi.
Saki Macozoma, who last week led the Tutuwa empowerment consortium that bought the equivalent of 4 percent of the South African operations of Standard Bank, was Nail`s chief executive until early June. He remains a non-executive director of Nail.
The road to the disposal of Nail assets started in March 2003, when Macozoma decided to fish in a different pond after failing to acquire Johnnic Communications and Kagiso Media.
Nail was untraded at R1.40 while the sector lost 1.58 percent.
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