Theta Gold Mines’ off-market takeover bid for Focus Minerals continues to intensify after the company increased its offer consideration.
As part of its improved bid, Theta has offered Focus shareholders five of its own shares for every two Focus shares.
In December, Theta proposed two of its own shares for every one Focus share, which was priced at approximately $0.36 per Focus share at the time.
The improved offer values each Focus share at $0.40 and represents a 40.4 per cent premium to Focus’ closing share price of $0.285 on February 11.
It’s also a 60 per cent premium on Focus’ $0.25-per-share entitlement offer which the company launched in December.
Focus raised approximately $25.5 million from the raise which will assist the recommencement of its Coolgardie gold project in Western Australia.
Theta has advised that, barring no competing bid, the gold explorer will not improve its $0.40-per-share offer.
The offer period has been extended to cater for the improved bid, with Focus shareholders able to accept the proposal up until 7pm AEDT on March 2.
Focus has made a coinciding announcement, encouraging its shareholders to take no action to Theta’s improved offer. In December, Focus said it was sceptical about the timing of the offer.
“The board’s current view is that: the TGM (Theta Gold Mines) intended offer is opportunistically timed, having been announced approximately one week after FML’s (Focus Minerals Limited) announcement of its entitlement offer,” Focus stated.
“(Also that) the TGM intended offer is opportunistically structured to include a condition that requires the entitlement offer not to proceed. That condition is an entirely discretionary one that TGM has elected to include as part of its offer.”
In early January, Theta amended its bid, waiving the condition necessitating Focus’ entitlement offer to not take place.
Focus aims to restart its Coolgardie project in 2022, which covers 138 square kilometres of prospective tenements on the outskirts of the Coolgardie township in the Goldfields region of WA.