Ferry operator ICG takeover bid lapses

IRISH Continental Group Plc, Ireland’s largest ferry operator, is no longer under offer after a takeover bid by investment company One51 and marine-services operator Doyle Group Ltd lapsed.

The Dublin-based company wasn’t able to present investors with an offer that would have achieved the required 75% approval, chairman John McGuckian said yesterday in a Regulatory News Service statement on behalf of its independent directors. The Irish Takeover Panel had set an October 31 deadline for One51 and Doyle to extend their €561m offer.