Morrisons is set to be sold at auction this weekend, with two rival private equity firms vying to buy the supermarket giant.
US-based Fortress will attempt to outbid rival Clayton, Dubilier & Rice (CD&R) over five rounds on Saturday.
A result will be announced by Monday morning, although the process could also be scrapped if either side state they will not increase their current offers.
The stock market’s Takeover Panel has announced the auction process after a long-running battle to buy the chain.
CD&R first made an approach for the Bradford-based grocer back in June, leading to speculation the sector was ripe for private equity takeovers.
Following the June bid, rival Softbank-backed Fortress made an offer of £6.3 billion in July.
But shareholders felt this was too low and Fortress, which owns Majestic Wines, returned a month later with an increased offer of £6.7 billion in August, which the board accepted.
Later that month CD&R returned with an increased bid of £7 billion, leading to the board withdrawing their support for the Fortress bid and throwing its weight behind the higher offer.
Shareholders are due to vote on the CD&R bid on October 19.
The Takeover Panel said: ‘On the basis that neither offeror has declared its offer final, such that either offer may be increased or otherwise revised, a competitive situation continues to exist.’
During the process, both sides have pledged to uphold the supermarket’s values.
They have also stressed that they do not plan to sell off vast swathes of the company’s stores.
In contrast to most major supermarkets, who lease their shops, Morrisons owns around 90% of its estate.
There have also been concerns that any new owner may reduce the supermarket’s tax bill, with off-shore shell companies set up ahead of the takeover.
As part of the auction, each party is able to make an increased bid.
If no bids are made, there will be up to three further rounds where either side can make an offer only if the other side made an increased bid in the immediately preceding round.
If no increased bids are received, a final round will run to allow for one last chance at a deal.
Both sides have agreed all bids will be at a fixed cash price and cannot include stakes in other businesses or dividends to shareholders.
If both sides are still bidding by the final round, Fortress must make its bid-per-share with an even number and CD&R with an odd number, to avoid the bids being the same.
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