South Africa’s Gold Fields will acquire Gold Road Resources in a sweetened deal valuing the Australian miner’s equity at A$3.7 billion ($2.39 billion), Gold Road said on Monday, as sky-high bullion prices drive a wave of tie-ups.
Gold Road’s shares rallied as much as 12% on the offer, which was pitched at a 14.5% premium to the company’s last closing price.
The buyout will allow Gold Fields to consolidate ownership over the low-cost, long-life Gruyere gold mine in Western Australia, which it operates under a joint venture with Gold Road.
It is the third notable deal in six months in the sector that is one of the hottest spots globally for mergers and acquisitions, as rising geopolitical uncertainties power a record rally in the yellow metal.
Australian gold miner Northern Star ResourcesNST.AX agreed in December to buy De Grey Mining (DEG.AX) in an all-share deal worth A$5 billion, while Ramelius Resources said it would take over smaller peer Spartan Resources to build a combined A$4.2 billion group.
Under the terms announced on Monday, Gold Road shareholders will receive a fixed cash consideration of A$2.52 per share and a variable cash component equal to the full value of the each shareholder’s stake in Northern Star Resources.
That was up from Gold Fields’ offer in March of A$2.27 cash per share plus the variable cash component which Gold Road rejected as “highly opportunistic”.
As of Friday’s close, the deal equates to A$3.40 per Gold Road share.
Gold Fields said on May 2 that it was in active discussions with Gold Road but did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Monday outside of normal office hours.
($1 = 1.5504 Australian dollars)
Reuters
