Orkla Fails In Bid For Majority In Jotun; To Retain Stake

Norwegian conglomerate Orkla ASA's (ORK.OS) bid to take a majority stake in paints producer Jotun AS fell through Thursday after shareholders representing 53.7% of the target firm's share capital rejected the offer.

The company said the chairman of Jotun's board of directors informed Orkla that the Gleditsch family, descendants of Jotun founder Odd Gleditsch, hadn't accepted its offer.

Johan Chr. Hovland, head of communications at Orkla, said Orkla's bid had therefore failed.

Despite failing to gain full ownership of Jotun, Orkla intends to retain its current stake in the company, Hovland said.

Orkla said on Aug. 31 that wholly owned subsidiary Lilleborg AS was seeking a majority stake in the paints producer in a deal worth up to 5 billion Norwegian krone ($932 million).

Orkla, which owns 42.5% of Jotun's share capital and 38.2% of its voting rights, had sought to buy the company's A shares for NOK70,000 each in cash.

Jotun's chairman on Aug. 31 told Dow Jones Newswires it was unlikely Orkla's bid would succeed.

At 1122 GMT, Orkla's shares traded 1.1% higher at NOK43.79.

-By Katarina Gustafsson, Dow Jones Newswires; [phone]; [e-mail]