Citic-led consortium buys South African gold miner Gold One at a 73% premium
posted on
May 23, 2011 09:18AM
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The Australian: Gold One strikes it rich with accepted takeover
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GOLD One International has accepted a takeover offer from a Chinese consortium that values the Africa-focused gold producer at roughly $600 million, adding the deal will provide funding for the miner's expansion plans and could lead to the company's listing on the Hong Kong bourse.
The offer from the consortium led by Baiyin Non-Ferrous Group comes less than a month after Gold One said it would significantly boost production of gold and add uranium reserves by investing $US750m ($712m) to acquire assets near Johannesburg.
The consortium bought an almost 18 per cent stake in the Sydney-based company in April, sparking speculation of a possible takeover.
Gold One, which has mines in South Africa and is exploring neighbouring countries, said its board was recommending a cash offer of 55c a share from a group of investors led by the Chinese mining and smelting firm, a unit of state-controlled Citic Group.
The deal comes at a time when precious metals have been trading near record levels, and the offer represents a 73 per cent premium to the company's $347m valuation last Thursday, when shares closed at 43c before the disclosure of the deal.
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Gold One said the consortium planned to buy a stake of between 60-75 per cent and had structured a deal to secure at least the lower end of that range.
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It said the buyers planned to retain Gold One's current management and the structure of its shareholding by black South African investors, as well as its primary listing in Australia and secondary listing in Johannesburg. The company may seek a future listing on the Hong Kong stock exchange, it said.