Spice secures extended deals with EDF group

The Leeds-based company, which rejected another takeover approach from private equity company Cinven earlier this week, said its electricity business Freedom has extended contracts with EDF Energy for major substation projects and overhead line works.

The extended contracts, which will run to the end of 2015, are of similar value to the previous contracts.

Martin Towers, chief executive of Spice, said: "We have an important, long-standing partnership with EDF Energy, and we are delighted to have extended these contracts. This is excellent news, built upon our exceptional service delivery and technical skills base."

He added that Spice now has five years of revenue visibility within its important distribution division, in a market with strong regulatory and environmental drivers.

"These extensions remove further risk from Spice and adds an additional level of certainty to future work flows," he said.

Spice rejected an improved offer from private equity suitor Cinven on Wednesday as too cheap and insisted its prospects are strong as an independent company.

The company, whose services include checking for unbilled properties and maintaining overhead power lines, revealed the European buyout group returned with an offer which values it at between 218m and 229m.

Former chief executive Simon Rigby, who controls around nine per cent of the company's shares, said he plans to meet management and urge them to open talks with Cinven – something they have so far refused to do. "I would have thought it's worth talking to them at this level," said Mr Rigby. "At the end of the day it's down to shareholders."

Three weeks ago Spice said a 56p a share offer made in May was "opportunistic and significantly undervalues" it. On Wednesday Spice said Cinven's latest offer, priced at between 62p and 65p a share, simply "undervalues" the group.