花旗此前在7月份建议力拓收购Arcadium Lithium。花旗分析师Paul Taggart当时写道，这家矿商的股价“远低于重置价值”，收购成本低于建立一个新的优质锂资产组合。Taggart说:“对于那些寻求规模、成本(盐水)和化学专业知识的公司来说，购买Arcadium可能比试图发现和开发化学能力更经济。”The world's second largest mining company, Rio Tinto, has confirmed that it has made a non-binding acquisition offer to Arcadium Lithium.
According to the financial news, the world's second largest mining company, Rio Tinto (RIO.US), has confirmed that it has made a non-binding acquisition offer to Arcadium Lithium (ALTM.US). In a statement on Monday, Rio Tinto stated that it is uncertain whether it will reach any deal with this U.S. mining company. Arcadium Lithium, valued at approximately 3.3 billion USD, confirmed in another statement that someone had been in contact with the company.
Since the beginning of this year, global lithium stocks have been sluggish. With oversupply and low demand from electric auto manufacturers, the price of this crucial battery metal, lithium, has plummeted. Arcadium Lithium's performance has lagged behind its peers, sparking speculation for months about the company being acquired.
Citigroup previously suggested Rio Tinto's acquisition of Arcadium Lithium in July. Citigroup analyst Paul Taggart wrote at the time that the miner's stock price was 'well below reset value,' with the acquisition cost lower than establishing a new high-quality lithium asset portfolio. Taggart said: 'For those seeking scale, cost, (brine) and chemical expertise, buying Arcadium may be more economical than trying to discover and develop chemical capabilities.'
Any deal would require Rio Tinto to win the support of Arcadium Lithium's board of directors and shareholders. Blackwattle Investment Partners portfolio managers Tim Riordan and Michael Teran wrote in a letter to Arcadium Lithium's board of directors last Saturday that a potential acquisition would be highly speculative, 'requiring a significant premium to achieve fair valuation for the business.' The letter stated that Blackwattle Investment Partners is an investor in Arcadium Lithium.
Riordan and Teran wrote: 'For shareholders, the timing of this potential sale is most disruptive.' They added that the global lithium market seems to have bottomed out, and any sale price should be close to 8 billion USD.
