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(Alliance News) - BHP Group Ltd said on Tuesday the miner and Oz Minerals Ltd had extended the exclusivity period by a week to Tuesday next week to finalise terms of the proposed takeover.
Back on November 18, the two companies entered into a confidentiality and exclusivity deed after BHP increased its non-binding indicative takeover offer for Oz to AUD28.25 per share in cash, representing a premium of 49% to Oz's closing price of AUD18.92 per share on August 5, when BHP tabled its initial offer.
Back in August, BHP offered AUD25.00 per share in cash for Sydney-listed Oz, but the Oz board rejected it at the time.
But in November the board of Oz signalled its intention to recommend the improved takeover offer, which values Oz at AUD9.6 billion.
Under the confidentiality and exclusivity deed entered into in November, Oz granted BHP four weeks to undertake exclusive due diligence and negotiate a binding scheme implementation deed.
BHP confirmed on Tuesday it had completed a due diligence on Oz.
The Melbourne-based diversified miner said the extension of exclusivity period allowed for finalisation of the binding scheme implementation deed, or SID, which sets out key terms and conditions of the acquisition.
Oz is a gold, copper and nickel miner. It owns and operates the Prominent Hill and Carrapateena mines in South Australia. It also has an interest in the Pedra Branca copper-gold mine in Brazil.
By Artwell Dlamini, Alliance News reporter
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