Industrial group Barloworld said on Tuesday a third-party opinion on its dispute with Tongaat Hulett over the R5.3bn sale of that company's starch business is due in September.
Barloworld, which had set out to buy Tongaat’s starch business under its subsidiary KLL Group, tried to back out of the deal in May stating that the effect of Covid-19 could alter the value of the acquisition.
Barloworld triggered a material change clause — a rarely invoked clause in mergers and acquisitions that allows buyers to withdraw from deals if the value of the transaction has been undermined by a significant development.
Tongaat disputes that Covid-19 constitutes such an event, and the matter was referred to a third-party accountant.
The independent expert will deliver its opinion as to whether a material change has occurred on or about September 21 2020, the group said.
The Competition Tribunal has approved the transaction, without conditions, but Barloworld said on Tuesday the dispute still needed to be resolved.
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