BA Glass’s mandatory bid for Tunisia’s SOTUVER Packaging creates 41.28% joint control with Bayahi Group

TUNISIA – Portugal’s BA Glass has launched a mandatory public takeover offer for Tunisian glass packaging manufacturer SOTUVER at 13.390 dinars (US$4.28) per share, after acquiring a 41.28 percent stake, with the Bayahi group holding an equal 41.28 percent under a joint control agreement.

The offer, approved by Tunisia’s Financial Market Council on 31 July 2026, was triggered on 16 April 2026 when BA Glass crossed the 40 percent voting rights threshold by purchasing 16,204,636 shares from the Bayahi group. 

The mandatory bid targets only 6,843,844 shares (17.43 percent of the capital), as the Bayahi group has stated in writing that it will not sell its shares. 

Joint Control and Shareholders’ Agreement

The block was sold under an agreement signed on 16 December 2025, which aims to maintain equal participation between BA Glass and the Bayahi group in SOTUVER’s capital for joint management and co-control. 

However, the notice specifies that the parity in capital distribution is not retained for the composition of the board of directors, though a shareholders’ agreement between the two groups is said to guarantee the preservation of each group’s interests in the most important decisions. 

A shareholder of the company, who requested anonymity, offered a reassuring interpretation that even if the board appears unbalanced, the agreement protects interests.

Industrial Logic and Market Position

BA Glass is a Portuguese glassmaker founded in 1912 in Avintes, near Porto, and is the world’s fourth-largest producer of glass packaging with over five thousand employees and fourteen plants. 

The Dutch entity used for the transaction is the holding vehicle, while the industrial and decision-making centre is Portuguese. 

The acquisition brings a global glass packaging leader into the capital of a Tunisian glassmaker, creating industrial synergies in glass container production for beverage, pharmaceutical and food sectors across North Africa and Europe. 

BA Glass has stated it foresees no significant changes to SOTUVER’s industrial, financial, or social policies, and rules out a delisting offer. 

The offer is open from 5 August to 26 August 2026 inclusive, with trading suspended on 3 and 4 August before resuming on the 5th, while the bid’s outcome is fixed before it even opens as it can only concern the portion of the capital not held by the two reference shareholders.

Subscribe to our email newsletters that provide busy executives like you with the latest news insights and trends from Africa and the World. SUBSCRIBE HERE