Rio Tinto said on Thursday that it has agreed to buy the remaining shares in Turquoise Hill Resources it does not already own for $3.3bn.
Rio, which already owned a 49% stake in the Canadian miner, will pay CAD43 per share. This is a 67% premium to the Turquoise Hill closing share price on 11 March, which was the last day before Rio’s initial public non-binding proposal to buy the company.
Rio’s chief executive Jakob Stausholm said: “Rio Tinto is committed to moving Oyu Tolgoi forward in direct partnership with the Government of Mongolia to realise its full potential for all stakeholders.
“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.”
Oyu Tolgoi is a copper mine in Mongolia.
