Saturday, July 19, 2025
ADVT 
National

CP Rail Abandons Threat Of Proxy Battle In Adjusting Norfolk Takeover Strategy

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 09 Feb, 2016 12:11 PM
    MONTREAL — Canadian Pacific Railway is asking Norfolk Southern shareholders to push the U.S. railway's board to enter into merger negotiations.
     
    Calgary-based CP  said Tuesday that instead of launching a proxy battle to elect a slate of sympathetic board members, it has submitted a proposal for a vote at the Virginia-based railway's next annual meeting.
     
    The last one was held in May.
     
    "We are not asking Norfolk Southern shareholders to vote on the existing proposal; we are simply asking them to vote in favour of having their board talk to us," CP Rail CEO Hunter Harrison said in a news release.
     
    "We continue to believe in the potential to create a transcontinental railroad with Norfolk Southern and believe this is a fair and measured approach to getting a deal done."
     
    Norfolk Southern spokesman Frank Brown declined to comment on CP's move. The railway has steadfastly refused to enter into negotiations on CP's US$30-billion offer as customers voiced their opposition to a deal.
     
    CP Rail (TSX:CP) signalled a possible change a couple of weeks ago when Harrison criticized interventions by elected congressional leaders and challenged those who claimed CP's proposed use of a trust was unethical and illegal even though it has been used many times in the past.
     
    Harrison told analysts the company was reviewing its strategy after saying it had failed to anticipate that politics would overtake the regulatory review process.
     
    "If the deck is stacked (against us) and if somebody's got an ace up their sleeve and are not playing by the rules, then we understand that and we have to adjust accordingly," he said during a Jan. 21 conference call on its quarterly results.
     
    CP said Tuesday that the cash-and-stock offer would create a company with the potential to grow earnings faster than either railway could achieve on its own, while delivering enhanced service to customers.
     
    "Shareholders and analysts will be watching Norfolk Southern closely throughout 2016 and if they continue to underperform, the pressure to work with CP will only grow," added Harrison.
     
    While he believes railway mergers will eventually be required to accommodate economic and population growth, Harrison has said CP would also assess whether to abandon its bid and instead focus on repurchasing its shares, which have fallen 35 per cent in the last year.
     
    Canadian Pacific has filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Justice asking antitrust authorities to review if major U.S. railways have conducted an illegal co-ordinated effort to block industry consolidation, including the proposed takeover of Norfolk Southern.

    MORE National ARTICLES

    Alberta Health Services Victim Of Second Laptop Theft In Two Years

    Alberta Health Services Victim Of Second Laptop Theft In Two Years
    Investigators say it appears one person took the computers during an apparent break-in at a department call centre in a west-side plaza on Jan. 25.

    Alberta Health Services Victim Of Second Laptop Theft In Two Years

    Shoppers Seek Out Flyers For Deals In The Face Of High Food Costs, Weak Loonie

    Shoppers Seek Out Flyers For Deals In The Face Of High Food Costs, Weak Loonie
    TORONTO — As the founder of savings blog Coupon Nannie, Dana Calder is always looking for a good bargain — and she's had plenty of company lately.

    Shoppers Seek Out Flyers For Deals In The Face Of High Food Costs, Weak Loonie

    Apology Issued To Decorated War Veteran Kicked Out Of Winnipeg Shopping Mall

    Apology Issued To Decorated War Veteran Kicked Out Of Winnipeg Shopping Mall
    WINNIPEG — A Winnipeg shopping mall has issued an apology to a decorated Manitoba war veteran and aboriginal elder who was told to get out last weekend.

    Apology Issued To Decorated War Veteran Kicked Out Of Winnipeg Shopping Mall

    Competition Bureau Won't Challenge Shaw's Acquisition Of Wind Mobile

    In issuing its "No Action Letter," the federal watchdog agency said the acquisition appears to pose no threat of a substantial lessening or prevention of competition.

    Competition Bureau Won't Challenge Shaw's Acquisition Of Wind Mobile

    Oil Slump Looms As Canada's Job Growth Sputters And Unemployment Rate Rises

    Oil Slump Looms As Canada's Job Growth Sputters And Unemployment Rate Rises
    OTTAWA — The bite of the oil-price shock sunk its teeth deeper into the job markets of Canada's oil-producing provinces last month, with Alberta posting its worst unemployment rate in a decade.

    Oil Slump Looms As Canada's Job Growth Sputters And Unemployment Rate Rises

    Trudeau To Attend Rally For Liberal Candidate In Provincial Byelection

    Trudeau To Attend Rally For Liberal Candidate In Provincial Byelection
    TORONTO — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is set to appear Tuesday at a rally with Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne for the Liberal candidate in an upcoming provincial byelection east of Toronto.

    Trudeau To Attend Rally For Liberal Candidate In Provincial Byelection