SIBANYE-Stillwater edged up its all-share offer for Lonmin in acknowledgment of improved pricing for platinum group metals (PGMs).
Announcing the publication of a circular ahead of the takeover, Sibanye-Stillwater said it would offer one share for each Lonmin share compared to its previous offer of 0.967 shares – an increase of 3.4% in value.
The group added that set against better PGM prices lately, was Lonmin’s financial constraints which remained – a moderating factor in deciding on the higher share exchange.
The combination of the two companies’ PGM assets is currently the subject of an appeal by the Association of Mineworkers & Construction Union (AMCU) against the South African Competition Tribunal’s decision of 21 November 2018, to approve Sibanye-Stillwater’s offer for Lonmin subject to certain specific conditions.
One of the conditions of the tribunal’s approval of the transaction was that the parties observed a six month moratorium on retrenchments. Lonmin had already committed to the reduction in employee numbers of some 12,500 over three years. As of November, about 2,000 jobs at Lonmin had been cut.
