The Brief:
OceanaGold has struck a binding deal to acquire ASX-listed Ausgold for around $776 million, marking its first Australian acquisition.
Corrs Chambers Westgarth advised OceanaGold while Baker McKenzie acted for Ausgold on the cross-border scheme.
The deal
OceanaGold is buying Ausgold by way of a scheme of arrangement, valuing the gold developer at roughly $776 million.
The prize is the Katanning Gold Project in Western Australia, a large-scale development with exploration potential across more than 3,000km2 of tenure. The project is targeting 120,000 ounces of average annual gold production over a mine life of more than 10 years. First gold is pencilled in for 2029.
Ausgold shareholders will receive 0.03365 OceanaGold shares for each share held, implying $1.36 per share. That’s a 28% premium to Ausgold's last close and a 44% premium to the 20-day VWAP.
Shareholders can elect cash instead, capped at a $194 million pool, with any excess scaled back into scrip. On completion, Ausgold shareholders are expected to hold 6% to 8% of the combined group.
The Ausgold board has unanimously backed the scheme, as has major shareholder Dundee Corporation, which holds 7.7%.
The deal marks OceanaGold’s first acquisition in Australia, adding to a portfolio that already extends across the United States, New Zealand and the Philippines.
Who’s acting
Corrs Chambers Westgarth advised OceanaGold, led by corporate partner Russell Philip and special counsel Jonathan Dos Santos. Philip is on a roll, recently advising Vault Minerals on its $12.6bn scheme merger with Genesis Minerals, one of the year’s biggest mining mandates.
Baker McKenzie acted for Ausgold, jointly led by M&A partners Richard Lustig and Rick Troiano.
What they said
Corrs’ Russell Philip said the deal underscores demand for Australian assets:
“The proposed acquisition will combine OceanaGold's significant operational and development expertise with a promising Australian gold development project, and highlights the strong global demand for high-quality Australian mining assets.”
Baker McKenzie’s Richard Lustig and Rick Troiano said the deal pairs a quality asset with a proven operator:
“The proposed combination brings together a high-quality Australian development asset and an established international mining company with the financial strength, operational expertise and market presence to support the next phase of the Katanning Gold Project’s development.”
Source: Corrs Chambers Westgarth, Baker McKenzie, ASX