Sydney Airport Limited (ASX:SYD) on October 18, 2021 said the four-week due diligence access granted in relation to the AUD 23.6 billion (USD 17.4 billion/EUR 15.1 billion) takeover bid from an international consortium including Australian fund manager IFM Holdings Pty Ltd. and Global Infrastructure Management, LLC (GIP) has expired and the parties now continue negotiations on a potential transaction. The Australian airport operator's boards continue to negotiate the relevant transaction documents with a view to the parties seeking their respective internal approvals over the coming weeks, a statement said. The target company also reaffirmed its intention to unanimously recommend that investors vote in favour of the deal, in the absence of a superior proposal and subject to an independent expert concluding that the proposed transaction is in the best interests of Sydney Airport securityholders. The recently sweetened indicative, conditional and non-binding proposal values the target company at AUD 8.75 per share, up from the previously improved offer of AUD 8.45 apiece that was rejected in the middle of August.