Shareholders have thrown their weight behind Aveng, once the JSE’s most valuable construction group, which has been reduced to tapping investors for cash. In a rare move, the company’s shareholders not only supported a recent capital raise, but said they wanted to invest more cash to support its recovery.
At an extraordinary general meeting this week, more than 98% of shareholders voted in support of another R100-million rights offer after supporting a R300-million capital raise in March as part of a balance sheet restructure.
Apart from turning to shareholders, the company has also been selling non-core businesses piecemeal as it battles to recover from a massive cash crunch due to expensive debt it had to service while navigating the downturn across the construction sector that followed the 2010 Fifa World Cup.