Photo by: Bloomberg
PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Iron-ore miner Atlas Iron has given suitor Mineral Resources (MinRes) three business days to match the takeover offer Hancock Prospecting put on the table earlier this week.
Hancock on Monday revealed a 4.2c a share cash offer for Atlas, in which it already holds a 19.96% interest.
The Hancock offer would only be subject to the condition that no prescribed occurrences occurred in relation to Atlas or its subsidiaries prior to the three business days after the end of the Hancock offer period.
The A$390-million Hancock offer was competing against the A$280-million takeover offer previously issued by MinRes, which was offering Atlas shareholders one new MinRes share for every 571 Atlas shares held. Based on the closing price of both companies’ share before the offer, the offer valued Atlas shares at 3.02c a share.
Atlas told shareholders on Tuesday that the company has assessed the Hancock offer and determined that it could lead to a superior proposal when compared with the MinRes offer.
The takeover target has now issued MinRes with a notice under the matching rights regime in the MinRes scheme implementation deed, giving the company three business days in which to make a counter proposal to the Hancock offer.
The company’s directors have maintained their recommendation in favour of the MinRes proposal, until MinRes had an opportunity to make a counter proposal.