Canadian nickel junior Noront Resources on Tuesday confirmed that it had received a nonbinding letter and related draft documents from Australian billionaire Andrew Forrest’s Wyloo Metals regarding a new takeover offer for the company.
The documents outline, among other things, the terms and conditions upon which Wyloo would be prepared to buy all the shares of Noront that it did not already own for C$1.10 each.
Noront stated that the updated Wyloo proposal was subject to, among other things, negotiating and executing definitive transaction documents with the Australian investor.
“Noront and its advisers are reviewing the transaction Documents, and the Noront Board and the Special Committee remain focused on fulfilling their fiduciary duties and surfacing maximum value for the shareholders of Noront. The company intends to negotiate the transaction documents with Wyloo Metals directly and constructively, and will provide any further updates to the shareholders of Noront at the appropriate time,” the explorer and developer stated.
TD Securities is acting as financial adviser, Bennett Jones is acting as legal counsel and Longview Communications & Public Affairs is acting as communications adviser to Noront.
BHP in October trumped Wyloo’s initial C$0.70-a-share cash offer for Noront, by offering C$0.75 a share for the Canadian nickel developer, with the Noront board throwing its weight behind the BHP offer. Since then, BHP has been in talks with Wyloo over its 37.2% interest in Noront. However, the mining major said on Monday that discussions with Noront had ended, as the parties were unable to reach an agreement.
Wyloo then launched an improved offer, which is a 47% increase on BHP’s bid for the Canadian company.
Noront is developing one of Canada’s biggest potential mineral reserves, in a largely untapped northern Ontario region dubbed the Ring of Fire. The company’s first project is a 100%-owned, high-grade, nickel, copper and platinum group element deposit called Eagle’s Nest. It is the largest high-grade nickel discovery in Canada since Voisey’s Bay and the most advanced project in the Ring of Fire.
The other projects in its pipeline are the Blackbird and Black Thor chromite deposits in conjunction with a ferrochrome production facility in Sault Ste. Marie.