ABP dismissed the offer from a group comprising Borealis Infrastructure Management Inc (an investment vehicle directed by GIC Special Investments Pte Ltd) and Goldman Sachs International as “wholly inadequate”.
The non-binding indicative offer of 730p per ordinary share was received by the ABP board shortly after the consortium declared it was interested in buying the ports operator.
The offer follows a flurry of takeover activity in the ports sector, sparked by world trade growth, which had lifted earnings at ports operators.
DP World of Dubai paid £3.9bn for P&O in March, while Babcock & Brown Infrastructure Group agreed to buy PD Ports for £607m last December.
ABP owns 21 UK ports and handles about 25% of British seaborne trade, including timber imports to ports such as Newport and Hull.
