Rio Tinto has triumphed in its battle to win the right to take over its hostile joint-venture partner Ivanhoe Mines, after an independent arbitrator ruled that Ivanhoe's "poison pill" defence is invalid and that Rio was not in breach of an agreement between the two firms.
Rio, which currently owns a 49% stake in Ivanhoe, had its attempts to increase its stake in the firm thwarted by Ivanhoe's introduction of a shareholders' rights plan last year, which was intended to prevent Rio from increasing its stake when its five-year agreement limiting its stake to 49% expires in January.
The two firms share a huge copper and gold project in Mongolia.
Subscribe to MoneyWeek
Subscribe to MoneyWeek today and get your first six magazine issues absolutely FREE
Sign up to Money Morning
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
Rio is not currently planning a full takeover bid, but said it "reserves the right to change its intention in the future."
In effect, Rio is now able to place a bid in its own time as the recent events have prevented a bidding war from happening.
Rio Tinto's share price rose 2.52% to 3,197.5p by 14:26PM.
NR
-
Top India funds to invest inAre you thinking about investing in India funds? Tracker funds have earned excellent returns, but trusts that backed small-cap growth stocks did even better
-
Are the Conservatives really responsible for lower inflation?The Conservatives are saying they have turned the economy around. But how much control do politicians really have over economic data?
