Peabody Energy and ArcelorMittal have acquired a controlling stake in Australia's Macarthur Coal-- world's biggest pulverised coal producer, which has been their bidding target since July.
In a joint statement released today, both the companies said they now hold approximately 59.85% of the Macarthur shares through a subsidiary PEAMCoal which is more than minimum acceptance condition of 50.01%.
Following this, the offer has now been made unconditional, the statement added.
PEAMCoal, which is a 60:40 joint venture of Peabody and ArcelorMittal, had offered AUD 16 per share for acquiring Macarthur's shares, valuing the deal at AUD 4.8 billion.
"We are pleased to obtain a controlling interest in Macarthur Coal and look forward to advancing the company's operating performance and growth initiatives," Peabody Chairman and CEO Gregory H Boyce said.
The announcement came two days after Macarthur's largest shareholder and Chinese investment fund CITIC Resources' backed the deal. Prior to its support, CITIC along with its subsidiary held a combined 25.2% stake in Macarthur.
The Chinese fund has said on Friday that it expects to have one-off gain of AUD 398.4 million from sale of its stake.
The statement also said its offer price will increase to AUD 16.25 per share for Macarthur shareholders, if it obtains at least 90% stake by November 11, 2011.
"We encourage remaining Macarthur shareholders to accept without delay and improve their chances of receiving the premium AUD 16.25 per share price, should we reach the 90% compulsory acquisition threshold," ArcelorMittal CFO Aditya Mittal said.
South Korean steel maker POSCO, which holds 7.25% stake in Macarthur, was not immediately available for comment.
The Peabody-ArcelorMittal combined has already secured all regulatory clearances for the acquisition.
On July 11, the two companies had made an initial offer of AUD 15.50 per share through PEAMCoal, for acquiring the Australian mining firm.
Thereafter, on August 1, they launched a hostile takeover bid after Macarthur Board refused to back the offer. Subsequently, on August 30, the Australian firm's board agreed to the offer.
Macarthur, the world's largest producer of pulverised coal, with its two mines in Queensland's Bowen Basin, has been a takeover target for many companies and had fended off four such bids in recent times, including of Peabody Energy.
The company holds total coal reserves of 270 million tonne and total resources of about 2.3 billion tonne. It exports its entire production and has plans to double its production capacity by 2014.
