WIN-WIN OUTCOME: Mr Oei walks away from the buyout tussle with over $310 million of profit while Mr Ong now holds 81 per cent of Natsteel. -- PHOTOS: ST FILE PHOTO, CLUB 21

View more photos

They accumulated shares in the company and jockeyed publicly for the support of other major shareholders like DBS Group Holdings and Temasek Holdings.

Hotelier Ong Beng Seng eventually won the bruising battle, leaving the loser, businessman Oei Hong Leong, holding on to a 30 per cent stake.

Yesterday, Mr Oei closed the final chapter on the battle when he sold his entire Natsteel stake to Mr Ong for $162.6 million, or $1.45 a share.

Together with the $374 million in dividends he received over the last five years, Mr Oei walked away with a profit of over $310 million.

The Indonesian-born tycoon, who has a market reputation for sniffing out great investment opportunities, had paid $225.8 million for his stake, an average of $2 per share.

'We had a win-win outcome and that's how business should be conducted,' Mr Oei told The Straits Times yesterday.

'I subscribe to the Olympic spirit where even the loser can go away with something.'

Mr Ong now holds 81 per cent of Natsteel.

To show that there were no hard feelings, Mr Oei sent a big bouquet of flowers to Mr Ong - something he had also done five years ago the morning after he lost the takeover battle.

The first bouquet came with a note of congratulations. The second one, said Mr Oei, was to thank Mr Ong for 'doing all the hard work' that enabled him to make a profit as a Natsteel shareholder.

'I know Beng Seng will make more money from this, but I am happy for him,' added Mr Oei.

The sale price of $1.45 per share is a 10 per cent premium over last Friday's closing price of $1.32. Natsteel shares were not traded yesterday.

The agreement between Mr Oei and Mr Ong was struck last week, but the sale was completed yesterday.

On his part, Mr Ong - the man responsible for bringing the upcoming Formula One night race to Singapore - has invited Mr Oei to watch the event with him in September.

The fight for Natsteel started in 2002 after its management, led by then president Ang Kong Hua, failed in its attempt to take over the company in a management buyout (MBO). Shareholders had judged the MBO price to be too low.

Sensing an opportunity, both Mr Oei and Mr Ong jumped in with their own bids and the fight for the control of Natsteel became one of the biggest corporate stories of the year.

In the five years since Mr Ong took control of the company, Natsteel has seen some dramatic changes.

It is no longer even a steel company, having sold its core steel business to Indian conglomerate Tata Steel in 2005 for $486 million.

The company now has a 22 per cent stake in a Thai petrochemical company. It also makes building products like precast concrete and container spreaders used in ports worldwide.

Mr Oei has spent the last five years as a vocal shareholder. He has called on management to pay out more in dividends following the sale of the steel business to Natsteel.

He has also repeatedly opposed any move to change the company's name - striking down the seventh attempt by management to do so last September.

Mr Oei revealed yesterday that he will be putting the proceeds from the sale of his Natsteel stake to good use.

He said he will donate some of the money to charity and use the rest to build two Buddhist museums - one in Singapore and one in Vancouver.

ignatius@sph.com.sg