As shares in Blue Circle Industries continue to soar amid speculation that the construction-materials giant is at the center of a bidding war, French cement giant Lafarge SA finally made its first formal bid for the UK-based company. Lafarge presented an unsolicited offer of about US$5.5 billion. But even before the bid was officially announced, Blue Circle rejected the amount, which may spark the beginnings of a hostile takeover by Lafarge. In comments appearing in The Wall Street Journal, a Blue Circle spokesperson said the Lafarge offer was grossly undervalued and extremely unwelcome. According to a statement issued by Blue Circle, "The board [of directors] believes that this offer is wholly inadequate and should be rejected. This pre-conditional offer is clearly opportunistic and under prepared. The price is even lower than that mentioned [prior to the official offer], which significantly undervalued the company and its potential. [In addition,] Lafarge has not yet arranged financing [for the deal]." Board members also urged shareholders not to take any action as a result of this offer and not to sell in the market.

If Lafarge were to take over Blue Circle, it would create the world's largest cement-producing corporation. But some analysts say that in order for that to happen, Lafarge would have to increase its offer to somewhere in the US$6.2 billion to US$6.6 billion range. Another sticking point may center around competition issues, particularly in the North American market. While a takeover of Blue Circle would increase Lafarge's presence in the United Kingdom, the interests of the two companies may be at odds in areas of Eastern Canada, Michigan, and along the East Coast of the United States.

London's Financial Times also mentioned that several other companies also were possibly preparing bids for Blue Circle, including Holderbank, Germany's Heidelberger, and Italy's Italcementi.