News: PEA Australia's Pacific Energy picks QIC's $321 mln offer

Sept 16 (Reuters) - Australia's Pacific Energy (PEA) said on Monday it would back a $321.18 million takeover offer by QIC Private Capital after the investment manager matched a rival consortium's recent offer for the power supplier.

Pacific Energy said the A$466.7 million or A$1.085 per share offer by a unit of QIC provides "a shorter time frame" to complete than a rival bid by a consortium of Australian fund manager Infrastructure Capital Group and Canada's OPTrust.

Under QIC's revised offer announced on Friday, the Queensland government-backed investment manager will pay an extra A$0.005 per Pacific share if a A$2.5 million break fee is not paid to the rival consortium.

"Pacific Energy Board recommends all Pacific Energy shareholders vote in favour of the revised QIC offer in the absence of a superior proposal," the company said in a statement.

Pacific Energy, which also has operations in Africa, said its top shareholder and Executive Director Kenneth Hall intends to vote in favour of QIC offer.

Calls to Infrastructure Capital Group's offices in Melbourne and Sydney went unanswered, while OPTrust did not immediately reply to an email request for comment from Reuters.

The offer by the consortium will be withdrawn on Tuesday since the two parties have not entered an agreement, according to the offer last week. ($1 = 1.4531 Australian dollars)