Morning Briefing: Rio Tinto Acquires Arcadium Lithium in an All-Cash Deal
Good morning and welcome to the Mining Stock Daily Morning Briefing.
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Today is Wednesday, October 9th
Gold and silver both took a beating yesterday at the hands of the Comex banks. Right on cue at the 8:20 a.m. Comex open of gold trading, the gold price was shoved off a cliff from $2672 to as low as $2624 before bouncing to settle in the afternoon at $2640, down $21 from Monday. Silver similarly was throttled in the paper contract market, dropping from $31.70 to as low as $30.38 before bouncing to settle at $30.90, down a buck from Monday.
The mining stocks understood that the metal prices were being coerced lower on the Comex, as GDX closed nearly flat. The Mining Stock Journal commented that it seems for now that the Fed is working to keep gold below $2700 and silver below $32.
We’ll get to the news from the miners and explorers here in a moment, but first a quick word about today’s sponsor.
This episode of Mining Stock Daily is brought to you by…Arizona Sonoran Copper
Arizona Sonoran Copper Company (ASCU:TSX) is focused on developing its brownfield copper project on private land in Arizona. The Cactus Mine Project is located less than an hour's drive from the Phoenix International airport. Grid power and the Union Pacific Rail line situated at the base of the Cactus Project main road. With permitted water access, a streamlined permitting framework and infrastructure already in place, ASCU's Cactus Mine Project is a lower risk copper development project in the infrastructure-rich heartland of Arizona.For more information, please visit www.arizonasonoran.com.
And Here’s what you need to know this morning…..
Big new overnight as Rio Tinto does their first big deal in 17 years. They announced the acquisition of Arcadium Lithium in an all-cash deal valued at $6.7B. The acquisition price of $5.85 per share represents a 90% premium over Arcadium’s closing price on Oct. 4. Arcadium is a vertically integrated lithium chemicals producer, and boasts a production capacity of 75,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent annually, with plans to double by 2028. The acquisition has been approved by both companies’ boards and is expected to close by mid-2025.
Americas Gold and Silver announced it has entered into a binding agreement with an affiliate of Eric Sprott and Paul Andre Huet under which Americas will acquire the remaining 40% interest in the Galena Complex in Idaho to consolidate the current Galena joint venture. Upon the closing of the Acquisition, Paul Andre Huet will be appointed Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Company. Darren Blasutti will remain as President. The Company also announces that it has entered into an agreement to complete a bought deal private placement financing of subscription receipts of the Company to raise gross proceeds of approximately C$40 million at an issue price of C$0.40 per Subscription Receipt. The Company is also in advanced discussions with numerous lenders with respect to a debt financing to restructure Americas balance sheet and is in the process of evaluating indicative terms received. It is anticipated that the Company will enter into exclusive negotiations in the near-term with the intention of replacing existing debt facilities. (TSX: USA) (NYSE American: USAS) News Release
Metals Acquisition Limited says they have received firm commitments to raise approximately A$150M (US$103M). The company says the placement, priced at $18 per new CHESS depositary interest (or CDI), is supported by new and existing institutional and sophisticated investors both in Australia and offshore. Proceeds of the Placement, together with existing cash, will enable MAC to optimise its balance sheet and de-lever following the acquisition of the CSA Copper Mine from Glencore plc in mid-2023, while also providing additional flexibility to pursue strategic inorganic growth opportunities. (NYSE: MTAL; ASX:MAC) News Release
Southern Cross Gold says they have initiated a regional scale induced polarization geophysical survey at its Sunday Creek project in Victoria. The IP survey extends over 12 km 2 and covers 6 km strike of the dyke and altered sediment hosted gold mineralized trend to cover significant historical mining areas including Tonstal, Leviathan, Consols and Aftermath. Five drill rigs are operating at site, with 22 diamond drill holes currently being processed and analyzed with an additional 5 holes in progress.
And Arizona Sonoran Copper has closed its $34.5M bought deal. The company issued just under 24 million common shares at a price of $1.45 per share. The company will use the proceeds of the offering for exploration and development at its Cactus Mine Project in Arizona. News Release
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