Week in review

Friday 12th March 2004

Tenon, the former Fletcher Challenge Forests, declared a $9 million gain from closing out US dollar debt.

Payment solutions company Cadmus Technology has won certification from global payment services company First Data to deploy Cadmus EMV and TripleDES terminals to merchants across Australia. The win also opened up a number of new international market opportunities, the company said.

Swedish group Assa Abloy bought Security Merchants, a transtasman security systems provider, for an undisclosed sum.

The board of guardians of the New Zealand Superannuation Fund appointed New York-based Bernstein Research and Management and Chicago-based LSV Asset Management to manage its international equity portfolio, bringing the fund's investment managers to nine.

The public offering of shares in GRD spin-off Oceana Gold, which owns the Macraes and Reefton mines in the South Island, closed oversubscribed. GRD's associated share buyback was also oversubscribed.

Richard Thomson, an Australian subsidiary of listed medical supplies company Ebos, bought the LiceBlaster range of head lice treatment products from Emerald Forest Pharmaceuticals for an undisclosed cash sum.

In the last throes of a takeover by Ngai Tahu, Shotover Jet bought Abel Tasman Seafaries, a water taxi operator, for $2.2 million.

Rural Equities, a spinoff from main board-listed Williams & Kettle, became the ninth company to join new share trading platform Unlisted. Rural Equities manages the New Zealand Rural Property Trust.

Contact Energy and Mighty River Power pledged $20 million apiece to establish a gas exploration fund. The pair is seeking at least another $40 million from other parties.

Todd Energy said a gasfield find off the North Island's West Coast could be New Zealand's third-largest.

Privately owned Argent Networks won a $3.5 million contract to install its customer billing system at Iraq Telecom as part of the US' reconstruction programme.

Sanford and Sealord, the country's two largest fishing companies, are discussing a merger that would create a $1 billion listed entity that would have about 70% of industry sales.

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