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Johannesburg - Waco International Holdings, a South African building-equipment rental company, postponed its planned R3.5bn share sale following the fatal collapse of a support structure for a bridge being built over a Johannesburg freeway.
Waco rented apparatus to bridge-builder Murray & Roberts [JSE:MUR] that was part of the wreck, Chief Executive Officer Stephen Goodburn said by phone on Thursday. The company will probably try to revive the listing next year, he said.
Waco had planned to raise as much as R1.9bn from the issue of new stock in Johannesburg, while shareholders including Ethos Private Equity, Rand Merchant Bank and Standard Bank Group intended to sell shares worth a maximum of R1.6bn. The listing was scheduled to take place on October 23.
“In light of market uncertainty and industry concerns arising from the tragic collapse of the M1 bridge in Sandton... the company has decided that it is at this time no longer appropriate to continue with the placement and listing,” the company said in a statement.
The support structure of the bridge being built by Murray & Roberts, South Africa’s second-biggest construction company, collapsed over the freeway serving Sandton, Johannesburg’s financial district, on Wednesday. At least two people were killed and several were injured. The bridge was being constructed to enable pedestrians to cross the freeway separating Sandton and Alexandra, a nearby township.
“We got very good uptake on the IPO, unfortunately the tragic loss of lives with the bridge made investors quite nervous and we saw a reduction in a number of the orders," Goodburn said.
Murray & Roberts shares fell the most in more than four and a half years on Wednesday after it was made public that the company was building the bridge. The stock gave up all Thursday's gains to end down a further 0.45% to R11.15, after a 7.3% drop the previous day.
