Cemex, which through subsidiary, Sierra Trading, is seeking to acquirea larger stake in Trinidad Cement Ltd, has responded to the negativeassessment of company directors of their previous offer as inadequateand unfair, by raising the offer price by TT$0.57.

Cemex, a global materials trader, announced its intention in early

December to acquire up to 132,616,942 ordinary shares in TCL at TT$4.50

each.

Together with Sierra’s existing share ownership in TCL of

approximately 39.5 per cent, the acquisition — if successful — would

result in the company holding up to 74.9 per cent of the equity share

capital in TCL.

However, two days before Christmas, TCL’s directors issued an

advisory to shareholders recommending that the offer of TT $4.50 be

rejected, stating that they were relying on an assessment of the offer

by Ernst and Young as being unfair to shareholders.

On Wednesday January 11, Cemex upped its price by TT 57 cents per

share, also offering to pay shareholders who accept their offer — except

for those in Barbados — the option of receiving payment in US dollars.

The new offer price of TT$5.07, said Cemex in a related release on

Wednesday, now represents a 50 per cent premium on share price at the

time of the December 5 offer, and “includes the option for shareholders

in Trinidad and Tobago and Jamaica to be paid in US dollars”.

Sierra will now pay approximately TT$672 million (US$101 million), based on the revised price.

The acceptance date of January 24 remains. On Wednesday, Cemex again

noted that if successful, TCL will continue operating as usual and

remain listed.

TCL’s main operations are in Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica and

Barbados. It is the majority shareholder of Caribbean Cement Company

Limited (CCCL), a cement producer in Jamaica.

As of September 30, 2016, TCL and its subsidiaries had EBITDA of

approximately US$77 million for the last 12 months and net debt of

approximately US$113 million, representing a net financial leverage of

approximately 1.5x.