JA Solar step closer to privatization

On track with its plans to go private, the Chinese solar PV module manufacturer has announced that the planned merger between itself, JASO Holdings Limited and its wholly owned units JASO Parent Limited and JASO Acquisition Limited has been approved at an extraordinary general meeting of shareholders, held yesterday.

Around 56.5% of the company’s total outstanding ordinary shares, which were presented in person or by proxy at the meeting, approved the merger, while over 10% objected.

In June 2015, Baofeng Jin, JA Solar’s CEO and chairman, and the Jinglong Group – a British Virgin Islands company of which Jin is the sole director – offered to buy out the solar PV module manufacturer for around US$489 million. Shortly after, JA Solar’s board of directors formed a special committee to consider the proposal.

Two years later, in June 2017, Jin, again applied to acquire all of JA Solar’s outstanding shares in a revised update of the 2015 takeover bid.

Upon completion of the new merger plan, JA Solar will become a privately owned company and will no longer be listed on the NASDAQ Global Select Market.

A consortium of investors — led by Jin and Jinglong Group — will acquire JA Solar in an all-cash transaction that will value the company’s equity at roughly $362.1 million.

They plan to fund the acquisition with a mixture of equity and debt, via a $160 million loan facility from CSI Finance, Credit Suisse and other institutions.