LONDON (dpa-AFX) - Hammerson plc (HMSO.L) said that it entered into a relationship agreement with Elliott Advisors. Elliott has confirmed its support for the Company's accelerated disposal programme and the Company's decision to expand the Board and establish a Board Investment and Disposals Committee.
The agreement contains certain other voting and governance terms, including a commitment that Elliott will vote in favour of the ordinary course resolutions recommended by the Board at the upcoming general meeting of the Company.
The company noted that Elliott has also agreed not to increase its voting interests and economic interests in the Company above 10% and 15% respectively. This agreement will remain in force for a maximum of 12 months, subject to certain conditions.
Hammerson said it plan to dispose of in excess of 500 million pounds of properties from across its portfolio in 2019 to strengthen the Group's financial position. The company said it is open-minded about the upper limit of the disposal programme and are in active discussions on transactions with a total value of over 900 million pounds.
The company noted that the potential transactions are in the form of portfolio sales, joint ventures and individual asset disposals from multiple sectors and territories. This includes a limited number of retail parks, which we remain committed to exiting over the medium term. Disposals are subject to market conditions and achieving attractive terms.
Assuming the disposal programme is successful, Hammerson's net debt would be below 3 billion pounds by the end of the year.
Given the importance of the Company's disposal programme, the Board has decided to establish an Investment and Disposal Committee to provide additional oversight and focus in this area, Hammerson said.
The Committee will be chaired by Andrew Formica. It will have three other members: Pierre Bouchut and two other Non-Executive Directors that the Board plans to appoint in 2019. These new appointments reflect the Board's wish to ensure a broad balance of skills and experience to enable it to fulfil its role and to ensure orderly succession planning for Directors.
David Atkins, Chief Executive of Hammerson, said, 'Having successfully achieved £570m of disposals in 2018, we are aiming to dispose of at least £500m in 2019. We remain committed to exiting retail parks over the medium term and are in active portfolio-wide discussions on transactions of over £900m, which would add further strength to our balance sheet.
Separately, Elliott said it welcomed both Hammerson Board's decision to search for two additional independent non-executive Directors, and the formation of a new Investment and Disposals Committee, with oversight and responsibility for the Company's ongoing disposals programme. This increased focus on strategic disposals, as marked by updated targets for 2019 and a current pipeline of potential sales of over 900 million pounds, signals a positive development in the Company's progress, and its ability to ensure that its portfolio of high quality assets delivers compelling value for all shareholders.
Elliott said it looks forward to continuing to engage with the Board of Hammerson to deliver on this strategy.
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