South Africa-based Impala Platinum Holdings has agreed to buy 100% of Canadian platinum group metals miner North American Palladium (NAP) shares.
NAP’s majority shareholder Brookfield Business Partners holds 81.0% of the stake and will be was offered C$16.00 ($12) per share in cash.
The deal is valued at C$1.008bn ($758m), which will be paid through a mix of $288m existing cash, $120m cash raised through a metal prepayment of excess inventory and a $350m loan.
NAP wholly owns and operates the Lac des Iles mine located northwest of Thunder Bay in Ontario. It also has a shareholding in the Sunday Lake project and Shebandowan Joint Venture.
Implats CEO Nico Muller said: “Implats has had an exploration presence in Canada for more than two decades and over the past three years we have developed a strong relationship with and understanding of NAP and its management team and operations.
“Ownership of NAP will accelerate our progress against a number of key strategic imperatives, and it is Implats’ view that the palladium market will remain in a structural deficit in the medium term, which should lend considerable support to stronger-for-longer pricing.”
The deal has already been approved by NAP’s board of directors who will recommend the company’s shareholders to vote for it.
Upon completion of a Canadian Plan of Arrangement, NAP and Implats’ wholly owned Canadian subsidiary 11638050 Canada (BidCo) will be consolidated. NAP will become Implats’ wholly owned subsidiary.
The deal is still dependent on meeting standard and regulatory conditions.