(Reuters) – French construction materials group Saint-Gobain confirmed on Wednesday it was in advanced talks to buy Australian building materials firm CSR Ltd.
“The combination is an attractive opportunity for both companies,” Saint-Gobain said in a statement, adding that the acquisition would give the French company an opportunity to enter the Australian market.
Saint-Gobain said the offer price is 9.00 Australian dollars ($5.90) cash per share. The non-binding offer was unanimously recommended by the board of CSR, the French company said.
CSR shares rose about 17.4% on Wednesday and were halted for trading. It had a market value of A$3.23 billion ($2.12 billion), as of last close, according to LSEG data. Shares in Saint-Gobain were down 0.73% at 0926 GMT.
Saint-Gobain’s statement confirms an earlier report from Bloomberg News.
($1 = 1.5258 Australian dollars)
(Reporting by Michal Aleksandrowicz in Gdansk; Editing by Jan Harvey)
