BHP has completed the previously announced A$9.6bn ($6.4bn) acquisition of rival Australian mining company OZ Minerals through a scheme implementation deed (SID).
Last month, BHP secured 98.33% of the votes in favour of the deal from OZ Minerals’ shareholders. The SID was signed by BHP’s fully-owned subsidiary BHP Lonsdale Investments and OZ Minerals in December 2022.
As per the terms of the deal, shareholders of the publicly-listed OZ Minerals have received A$26.5 ($17.75) per share in cash from BHP. Besides, the shareholders were paid a fully franked special dividend of A$1.75 ($1.17) per share by OZ Minerals.
OZ Minerals has also applied to be delisted from the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX). The company is focused on developing a portfolio of long life, low-cost copper-focused assets.
It has two operating assets, which include the Prominent Hill copper mine and the Carrapateena copper mine in Australia.
According to BHP, the acquisition will facilitate the creation of a copper basin in South Australia. This is planned to be achieved by tapping potential operational synergies driven by the proximity of the Carrapateena and Prominent Hill operations with BHP’s existing Olympic Dam asset and Oak Dam development resource.
BHP CEO Mike Henry said: “This acquisition strengthens BHP’s portfolio in copper and nickel and is in line with our strategy to meet increasing demand for the critical minerals needed for electric vehicles, wind turbines and solar panels to support the energy transition.
“Combining our two organisations will provide options for growth, bring new talent and innovation to unlock these resources in a sustainable way, and deliver value to shareholders and communities.”
BHP used a combination of its existing cash reserves and the proceeds of a debt facility to finance the cash payment.
