The bidders are offering P0.0088 per share, valuing the deal at about P99.7 million—a 14.2 percent premium to their acquisition cost of P0.0077 per sahre.
However, the offer is 63 percent below Coal Asia’s previous closing price of P0.024 per share.
The stock (COAL) was down over 8 percent to P0.022 per share on Tuesday’s morning session.
Mandatory offer
The buyers, which include the Tiu family’s Pure Energy Holdings, previously agreed to acquire 71.68 percent of Coal Asia, triggering a mandatory buyout offer for the remaining shares held by the minority.
The P99.7 million tender offer covers 11.33 billion shares, or 28.32 percent of Coal Asia’s stock, and will run from Nov. 14 to Dec. 12, 2025, giving minority investors the option to sell at the same price.
A fairness opinion by PwC (Isla Lipana & Co.) found the offer price fair, though near the lower end of its P0.0077–P0.0204 valuation range.
Insider deal
Several of the selling shareholders also sit on the board of Pure Water Corp., showing cross-ownership links between Coal Asia. Pure Water is 90 percent owned by Pure Energy Holdings.
Quad chair and controlling shareholder Ryan Wesley Yapkianwee sits on the board of Repower Energy Development Corp. alongside Pure Energy president Eric Roxas, who is both part of Coal Asia and a director of Pure Water Corp.
This also links Quad to the Pure Energy Group led by Dexter Tiu.
Pure Water backdoor?
Pure Water operates through its subsidiary Tubig Pilipinas Group Inc. (TPGI), a bulk water supply and distribution company.
TPGI manages water projects in Cavite and Negros Occidental and supplies the Bacolod City Water District through its unit Bacolod Bulk Water Inc., according to the website of Pure Energy.
The group also operates Princess Urduja Waterworks Systems Inc. in Pangasinan and has entered into joint ventures with Manila Water to develop and expand water systems nationwide.
Apart from Pure Water, Pure Energy owns listed firms Nexgen Energy and Repower Energy Development as well as privately he’d Pure Geothermal.
Miguel R. Camus has been a reporter covering various domestic business topics since 2009.
