On 31 August 2007 Hansen Technologies Limited (HSN) announced its intention to make a capital return to shareholders of $0.03 per share, subject to receiving confirmation from the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) that the payment would be treated for tax purposes as a return of capital in the hands of shareholders. In total this proposal represented a cash return to shareholders of approximately $4.5 million.
At Wednesday's Annual General Meeting of HSN, the shareholders were informed that no clarification had as yet been received from the ATO on this matter. The Meeting never-the-less passed Resolution 2 approving the payment of the capital return, subject to receiving the relevant confirmation from the ATO.
The Notice of Annual General Meeting, 10 October 2007, provided shareholders with a summary timetable for the processing of this capital return and stated that the record date for determining entitlements to participate in the capital return would be 26 November 2007. However it was also noted that if the ATO advice was not received in time the Record Date would need to be deferred until the relevant ATO response was received.
In the absence of a formal response from the ATO and, to comply with the ASX listing rules on minimum notice periods for distributions to be made to shareholders, we regret to advise that the timetable for this shareholder approved distribution is required to be suspended for the time being.
As previously advised, as soon as the ATO's response is received a subsequent announcement will be made to the ASX and a new timetable for making of the distribution will be detailed at that time.
Andrew Hansen, Managing Director said, "I regret the need to delay this payment but believe it is in the interest of shareholders that before we make the distribution we are assured of the taxation treatment of this payment in the hands of shareholders.
The Board of HSN is conscious of the uncertainty created by this delay and seek to assure shareholders that we are committed to return to shareholders, as soon as practical, approximately $4.5 million of the equity raised via the September 2005 rights issue which is considered to be surplus to the medium term requirements of the Company. In the event that the advice from the ATO is not supportive of treating this return as capital in the hands of shareholders, the Board will immediately consider the alternative options available for making this distribution to shareholders."