Rio Tinto Agrees In-Principle Deal to Acquire Turquoise Hill

By David Winning

SYDNEY--Rio Tinto PLC said it has agreed terms with Turquoise Hill Resources Ltd. to acquire the remaining shares in the Mongolia-focused copper miner that it doesn't already own.

Rio Tinto said it has agreed to pay 43 Canadian dollars (US$33) in cash to acquire all of the outstanding shares of Turquoise Hill, representing an improvement on its most recent offer of C$40 per share.

Turquoise Hill, which is 51%-owned by Rio Tinto, has a 66% interest in the Oyu Tolgoi copper-gold mine in Mongolia.

Rio Tinto said the C$43-a-share proposal represents its best and final offer, and that it values the Turquoise Hill minority share capital at around US$3.3 billion. It has also agreed to several new measures aimed at boosting Turquoise Hill's liquidity in the near term.

"This agreement represents another significant step following the recent commencement of the underground operations, and will simplify governance, improve efficiency and create greater certainty of funding for the long-term success of the Oyu Tolgoi project," said Jakob Stausholm, Rio Tinto's chief executive.

If the transaction is successful Rio Tinto will hold a 66% interest in Oyu Tolgoi with the remaining 34% owned by Mongolia's government.

Write to David Winning at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

September 01, 2022 00:26 ET (04:26 GMT)

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