November 2 (SeeNews) - Croatia's Fortenova Group, the successor to the collapsed food-to-retail concern Agrokor, said on Monday it invited selected bidders to start due diligence at its frozen food units Ledo Plus, Ledo Citluk, Frikom and several smaller ones, which have been offered for sale.
"The market test has confirmed that there is strong international interest among potential investors in our Frozen Food business. The qualified non-binding offers come from companies with outstanding investment and operational track record," Fortenova CFO, James Pearson, said in a statement, without providing the names of the selected bidders.
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The group CEO, Fabris Perusko, said in the statement that the due diligence process is expected to be completed by the end of this year.
"Our ultimate goal, over and above maximising value, remains the selection of a strategic partner who will make the maximum contribution to the further development of the Frozen Food Business Group," Perusko noted.
In September, Fortenova said it received several non-binding offers for the acquisition of its frozen food business which is intended to result in debt reduction and allow the group to invest in its remaining business areas in order to drive their future growth.
The business operations of Agrokor were transferred to the newly formed Fortenova Group in April 2019 under a settlement agreement with Agrokor's creditors endorsed by a Zagreb court in June 2018. Since then, Fortenova has been divesting non-core operations and focusing on core divisions of retail, food and agriculture in order to strengthen the group's capital position.
"In order to proactively achieve our targeted capital structure via deleveraging the company, Fortenova Group is ready to dispose of only one segment of the core business, which potentially would be the Frozen Food Business Group," Perusko said.