British grocer William Morrison Supermarkets formally tabled its £2.36 billion offer for rival Safeway today to set the regulatory clock ticking in a six-way takeover battle.
Morrison said the offer document would be published later today, three weeks after it sparked one of the most intense bid battles in British retail industry for years with an all-share offer for the fourth-biggest supermarket chain.
The acquisition of Safeway and its 10 per cent market shareis a rare opportunity for expansion in an industry governed by strict planning laws.
Under British takeover rules, Safeway must publish aresponse to the Morrison offer document, the first to beformally tabled, within 14 days. Morrison has an initial 60 days to wrap up a deal - but if it is trumped by a formal counter offer, that timetable is likely to be stretched further.
"Despite the expressions of interest made by others, theMorrisons offer is still the only one on the table," Morrison Executive Chairman Mr Ken Morrison said in a statement.
Safeway initially recommended Morrison's bid when it wasannounced on January 9th but has since dropped its backing after five other potential buyers stepped forward and said they were considering or planned to table offers.
Morrison is up against retail entrepreneur Mr Philip Green, oneof the favourites. However, Mr Green suffered a setback in hisplans earlier this week when Britain's competition watchdog asked him to make a formal application.
Morrison is also competing with US corporate buyout firmKohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co, British supermarket titans Tesco and J Sainsbury, and US retailer Wal-Mart's Britishsupermarket unit, ASDA.