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Highlights:
- Mineral Resources intends to make an off-market takeover bid to acquire Norwest Energy NL.
- The implied offer price is AU$0.60 per share.
- The takeover would support the energy strategy of Mineral Resources, the company said in a statement.
Australian mining services company, Mineral Resources Limited (ASX:MIN) on Friday (16 December 2022) shared its intent to make an off-market takeover bid to acquire all the shares in Norwest Energy NL (ASX:NWE) that it does not own currently. As reported, MinRes holds around 19.9% of Norwest shares on issue.
Norwest is a minority joint venture partner of MinRes in the Lockyer Deep gas project, located in the Perth Basin.
MinRes’ shares dropped to AU$79.60 per share at 10:10 AM AEDT and later entered the green territory. At 11:34 AM AEDT, the shares were spotted trading 0.55% higher at AU$82.45 per share. Including today’s gain, the share price has surged by 70.04% in a year and by 40.51% on a year-to-date basis.
Meanwhile, Norwest’s share price surged by 33.33% to AU$0.060 per share. In one year, Norwest’s share price has zoomed up by 200% and by 100% on a year-to-date basis.
Details of the takeover bid for Norwest Energy
According to ASX announcement, MinRes intends to offer one share of the company for 1,367 shares of Norwest held on the register date. The offer represents an offer price of AU$0.06 per share and an equity value of around AU$403 million.
The implied offer price of AU$0.06 per share represents a premium of 33% on the last closing price of Norwest.
Rational behind the takeover bid
One of the four growth pillars of MinRes is Energy. In 2021, the company, along with Norwest, made a substantial Lockyer Deep conventional gas discovery on EP 368. As reported, the company has a plan of exploration activities for Perth Basin permits, such as fast-tracking of appraisal, drilling six wells in the next two years and development studies at Lockyer Deep.
The company shared that belief that the acquisition of Norwest is an accretive addition in unlocking the potential of its gas asset portfolio. The offer supports the company’s energy strategy that focuses on delivering a long-life, low-cost, secure energy supply.
Management Commentary
On the development, Chris Ellison, managing director of MinRes, commented,
