Halter And Friede Goldman Amend Merger Terms

Halter Marine Group and Friede Goldman International have agreed to amend the terms of their proposed merger due to developments related to a contract dispute with a significant customer, as previously disclosed by Friede Goldman. Under the revised merger agreement, each Halter share will be converted into 0.57 of a share of Friede Goldman. The closing under the revised merger agreement will also be subject to the arrangement o bank financing for the combined company on terms mutually agreeable to Halter and Friede Goldman. Announced on June 1, the merger proposal originally provided for the exchange of 0.4614 of a Friede Goldman share for each Halter share. The boards of directors of both companies have approved the revised merger terms, and the investment banking firms representing the two companies have delivered fairness opinions based on the revised terms. Assuming approval of the merger at the stockholder meetings of Friede Goldman and Halter, the parties expect to close the merger early in the fourth quarter of 1999.