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Qatar Fund Mulls Cutting Debt in Sainsbury Bid: Report | ASHARQ AL-AWSAT English Archive 2005 -2017
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LONDON (Reuters) – Delta Two, the Qatari fund trying to buy Britain’s J Sainsbury Plc, is prepared to reduce the proportion of debt in its proposed 10.6 billion pound ($21.4 billion) bid, the Financial Times said on Tuesday.

The newspaper, without citing sources, also said the fund was negotiating with its lenders to extend the time limit on the firm commitments to provide 6 billion pounds of debt amid worries the market’s reduced appetite for risk could cause the deal to fall apart.

The board of Sainsbury, Britain’s third-biggest supermarket group, has asked Delta Two to boost the equity component of its proposal, currently 4.6 billion pounds, by about 1 billion pounds, the Financial Times said.

It said the fund was not expected to go that far, but was willing to make a concession in a bid to persuade the board to open its books.

The two sides will meet again on Wednesday, the Financial Times said.

None of the parties could immediately be reached for comment.