Glencore prepared to offer 3.05 shares per Xstrata share

Glencore's attempt to rescue the merger deal with Swiss mining giant Xstrata involves the upping of its offer to 3.05 Glencore shares per Xstrata share but also abandons the idea of this being a 'merger of equals'.

The board of Xstrata revealed it has has received a provisional proposal from Glencore International to amend the terms of the proposed merger between Glencore and Xstrata.

Adding the caveat that the proposal is still open to negotiation, Xstrata revealed that as well as increasing the merger terms from 2.8 Glencore shares per Xstrata share, the new proposal envisages changes to the proposed governance arrangements, including Glencore Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Ivan Glasenberg assuming the same role at the combined group, and the ability for Glencore to structure the transaction as a takeover offer or as a scheme of arrangement of Xstrata.

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The original proposal had Xstrata's current CEO, Mick Davis, taking on the CEO role at the combined entity - dubbed "Glenstrata" by the media - with Glasenberg as his deputy.

A resolution will be proposed at Xstrata's Court Meeting and the New Xstrata General Meeting to adjourn the meetings to a date to be fixed and notified to shareholders, to give Xstrata's independent directors a chance to mull the new offer.

Earlier in the day, Glencore revealed it had adjourned the Extraordinary General Meeting convened to vote on the proposed merger, as there had been some last minute developments.

JH