Petaquilla Minerals Ltd PTQMF

Right Back At You

[wwadehammer]

 

Inmet in ’Constructive’ Discussions to Sell Mine Stake

By Liezel Hill - Mar 8, 2013 12:40 PM ET

Inmet Mining Corp. (IMN), which is trying to fend off a C$5.1 billion hostile takeover bid fromFirst Quantum Minerals Ltd. (FM), is in talks to sell a stake in its Cobre Panama copper project.

Absent an improved offer from First Quantum, selling a minority stake in the project would offer more shareholder value, Toronto-based Inmet said today in a statement. Inmet continues to recommend that its shareholders reject First Quantum’s bid because it’s too low, the company said.

Inmet is currently engaged in talks with a potential strategic investor to sell a stake in Cobre Panama at “ a significant premium to the value implied by the First Quantum offer,” the company said in the statement.

First Quantum’s C$72 ($70-) a share offer for Inmet is scheduled to expire at 11:59 p.m. Toronto time on March 11. Gaining control of Cobre Panama would enable Vancouver-based First Quantum to create one of the world’s five largest copper producers.

Inmet rose 1.8 percent to C$68.92 at 12:33 p.m. in Toronto.