17/07/2008 (Forbes), London - New Britain Palm Oil Ltd. (NBPO) said it has again raised its cash offer for Ramu Agri-Industries Ltd., adding that the offer has been declared free from all conditions and the offer period extended to Aug. 30.

NBPO hiked the offer to 6.80 Papua New Guinean kina ($2.62) per Ramu share. On June 13, NBPO had raised the offer to 6.10 kina, valuing Ramu at $53 million. Ramu had rejected the offer.

NBPO on Thursday said it disagrees with estimates for Ramu's future sustainable EBITDA made by Ramu's independent adviser Deloitte Touch Tohmatsu, claiming that the estimates are 'not supported by their historic performance' and that Ramu has 'consistently underperformed against expectations' -- factors it said Ramu shareholders should consider.

It added that the reduction in sugar tariffs will reduce the profitability of Ramu's core sugar business.

With regards to Ramu's early stage palm oil operations, NBPO said it believes that in order to develop their full potential, significant capital investment in the region of 300 million kina would be required in the coming 5-7 years.

'NBPO is fully committed to making this investment should its offer be successful,' it said, adding that 'Ramu, in comparison, is constrained by a lack of capital and indeed has significant debt for a business of its size and current profitability'.

It concluded that the fair value range for Ramu shares is 5.96 kina to 6.80 kina, compared to the fair value range put forward by Deloitte of 7.94 kina to 8.98 kina.