Wheels & Deals

 Comment

BREAKFAST DEALS: Return to OZ

Michael Feller

Published 8:08 AM, 28 May 2009


Speculation surfaces that Barrick Gold and others could make a bid for OZ Minerals, while Clive Palmer gets set to build Australia’s biggest thermal coal mine. Plus wheeling and dealing at Roc Oil, Drillsearch and more.

.

.

OZ Minerals

The Foreign Investment Review Board has approved the sale of OZ Minerals' Martabe project in Indonesia to China Sci-Tech Holdings for $US211 million, plus a further $US7.5 million in reimbursed expenditure. The development comes as speculation surfaces that Barrick Gold, Morgan Stanley and RFC Group could make last-minute bids or recapitalisation proposals for the rest of OZ, interrupting a process handled for months now between OZ and acquirer Minmetals. Barrick, headquartered in Toronto, became the world's biggest pure gold mining company after acquiring a majority share in Placer Dome in 2006. RFC Group, on the other hand, is a private equity and corporate finance house with offices in Sydney and Melbourne. RFC has a special line in helping companies list on London's Alternative Investment Market and is run by Rob Adamson, Stephen Weir, Stephen Allen, Stuart Laing and Will Souter. OZ managing director Andrew Michelmore has said that Minmetals is the only offer on the table. Shareholders are set to vote on Minmetals' proposal on June 11. On completion of the deal Michelmore will step down, to be replaced by Anglo American executive Terry Burgess.

.

.

Waratah Coal

Clive Palmer, who according to The Australian has a new hair colour, also has a new $6.5 billion coal project in the works, after securing the support of the Metallurgical Corporation of China (MCC) as a 10 per cent investor in the project, run by his privately-held Waratah Coal. The Gold Coast billionaire's China First project will build several coal mines west of Townsville, a port and a 500 kilometre rail line. As part of the deal, MCC will off-take 30 million tonnes of coal each year and fund up to 70 per cent of total costs. Subject to government approval and an additional $US2 billion in funding to raise, Waratah could soon have Australia's biggest thermal coal mine, delivering $70 billion over its lifespan. And let’s hope that the deal with MCC is solid; they’re the company that had a "binding" contract with Andrew Forrest’s Fortescue Metals Group, the contract at the centre of a legal storm with ASIC.

.

.

Roc Oil

Indonesia's national oil company Pertamina has bought a 10 per cent stake in Roc Oil's Basker-Manta-Gummy project in the Bass Strait for $US31.5 million. The deal, which will help Roc pay down debt, leaves Roc with a 30 per cent interest in the project as well as operator status. Beach Petroleum also has a 30 per cent stake, conglomerate Itochu has 20 per cent and fellow Japanese trading house Sojitz Corporation has a 10 per cent share. It is the first Australian acquisition for Pertamina, which is the world's largest producer of LNG. Beyond its downstream and refining activities, its production and exploration work is mostly in Indonesia, but in recent years the company has started operating in Malaysia, Vietnam, Libya, Iraq, Qatar and Sudan.

.

.

Drillsearch Energy, 3D Oil and Beach Petroleum

The show goes on with Drillsearch Energy's takeover for 3D Oil, with the bidder extending its offer until June 9 and Veritas Securities, representing escrowed 3D shareholders who were unable to consider the bid, withdrawing its application to the Takeovers Panel. The show is also going on for Beach Petroleum's own bid for Drillsearch, however, which is contingent upon Drillsearch not taking over 3D. Drillsearch is hardly going to give up on the chase, but if the press releases of managing director and major shareholder Noel Newell are anything to go by, 3D isn't going to give itself up so easily. And don’t forget that there’s a boardroom war going on at Drillsearch as well. Despite the appointment of new managing director, two members of the board, Choo Beng Kai and Jim McKerlie, have convened a shareholder meeting to oust chairman Peter Simpson and fellow directors Peter Wicks and Russell Langusch. Simpson, Wicks and Langusch also convened a meeting to oust Choo and McKerlie. However, in a sign of solidarity they've now agreed to combine the two meetings, scheduled for a final showdown on July 31. The battle continues.

.

.

Allied Brands

Gold Coast-based franchise retail group Allied Brands has announced plans to acquire homewares business Villa & Hut for $1 million plus the assumption of $1.8 million in debt. Allied Brands has also announced a $2 million placement, partially to finance the acquisition. Villa & Hut sells mainly Indonesian-made furnishings and handicrafts across 16 outlets in Victoria, South Australia, Queensland and Tasmania. The company also has stores in Britain, Ireland, Bali and Philadelphia. Recently it has become as much a food and beverage chain, known for selling chai lattes in its tropical-themed 'Kafes'. Allied Brands said its coffee roasting facility at Mt Kuring-Gai will assume the production of the 32 tonnes of coffee the Kafes use each year.


Get all the latest deals with your breakfast each morning by adding Wheels & Deals to your e-mail alerts. Alternatively, you can follow the latest happenings on Twitter: Twitter.com/WheelsDeals

Do you have a rumour, tip or story idea for Wheels and Deals? E-mail deals@businessspectator.com.au




|  

Do you have a rumour, tip or story idea for Wheels and Deals?

Go to the Contact Us link (top right of the web page in the navigation menu) and select News Tip in "Type of Comment".


Comment


Be the first to comment on this story.



Contribute to the Conversation

To contribute your comments for possible publication, please Login or Register.

Preference will be given to succinct contributions. We may contact you via email prior to publication.