After months of negotiations, Canada’s biggest pure copper player First Quantum Minerals (TSX:FM)(LON:FQM) has acquired the 85.5% of the outstanding shares in Inmet Mining Corp. (TSX:IMN) and extending the deadline by 10 days.
The Vancouver-based company said in a statement Friday that the combination of the both firms’ assets has created one of the world’s leading copper producers with geographically diversified operations and development projects in eight countries across four continents.
Inmet shareholders who selected the cash and share option will receive $36.00 in cash and 1.6484 common shares of First Quantum per Inmet share. Those who picked the share alternative will obtain 3.2967 common shares of First Quantum per Inmet share. Finally, shareholders who chose the cash alternative will receive $40.60 in cash and 1.4376 common shares of First Quantum, subject in each case to adjustment for fractional shares and to confirmation of the number of Inmet shares validly tendered.
Once again the company extended the offer period to allow the rest of Inmet’s shareholders to reconsider their decision. The deadline is now 5:00 p.m. ET on April 1.
Philip Pascall, First Quantum’s Chairman and CEO, said the new mining company will be one of the fastest growing copper producers with a projected compound annual growth in copper production of more than 20% for at least the next decade.
According to Peter Bacchus, Global Head of Metals & Mining, from investment bank Jefferies International, the reached deal is one of only a handful of hostile takeovers that has successfully been completed without an upward revision to the offer price. He added it will likely be the largest, or one of the largest, takeover offers in the sector this year.
The Vancouver-based miner already holds extensive copper, nickel and gold assets throughout Africa and Australia, while Inmet mines copper and zinc in Turkey, Spain and Finland.
The new merged company projects a 1.3 million tonnes of copper output per year by 2018.
