One More Thing:After 15 years in charge at Irish Continental Group (ICG), chief executive Eamonn Rothwell is clearly not going to give it up without a fight.
Having sat on his hands for about two months waiting for Moonduster to land its €22-a-share bid, Rothwell sprang into life on Wednesday spending €38.5 million to buy 1.75 million shares.
It's a fascinating contest. Rothwell is a hard-nosed businessman and skilled financier. He knows ICG inside out and nobody can have a better view of what the company is really worth.
Philip Lynch carved a brilliant reputation for himself as head of IAWS, an agribusiness group that he transformed into a leading player in the higher-margin food-on-the-go business. He is now trying to repeat the trick with One51, the former IAWS Co-op.
His decision to pile into NTR shares a few years back raised eyebrows at the time but has paid a handsome dividend.
Not that he hasn't run up the odd blind alley before. Remember SWS?
Before March, ICG looked like a washed-up former boxer - battered and bruised. Passenger numbers had declined by 19 per cent over the past three years and the cost of fuel was rising at a rate of knots.
On the plus side, freight volumes are decent and it has an expensive but modern fleet that has a residual value.
By outsourcing jobs to foreign nationals, Rothwell has pared his cost base back to the bone.
ICG made a healthy operating profit last year of €32 million on turnover of €312 million. This compared with an operating loss of €13.5 million in 2005, due to hefty redundancy costs.
With the business now lean, the profit picture should brighten in the years ahead. ICG also has a strong position on shipping routes to Britain and France.
These are the factors that would have attracted Philip Lynch and the Doyle Group in Cork, who are backing Moonduster. The ferry business is in vogue at the moment, with a raft of acquisitions taking place over the past 12 months.
Lynch must have hoped that last week's offer, which represented an 18.5 per cent premium to Rothwell's March bid, would have been enough to win the day.
Rothwell's share buying this week has brought about a stalemate. Both sides can now block the other's bid.
Rothwell's bid carries no competition issues whereas the Doyle Group's extensive shipping activities could queer the pitch for Moonduster.
The independent directors are in a tricky position. Having initially recommended Rothwell's bid in March, they last week moved to Lynch's corner. They now have two matching offers on the table.
Whatever the outcome, one thing is for sure. ICG will not be sold at €22 a share.
