Rio Tinto backs bid from Chinese-backed Yancoal for its coal mines
RIO Tinto has turned down an offer of $2.675million (£2.1billion) for its coal mines in Australia from FTSE 100 rival Glencore in favour of a bid from Chinese-backed Yancoal.
Rio Tinto has turned down an offer for its coal mines in Australia from rival Glencore
Glencore raised its cash offer for Coal & Allied on Friday, with Yancoal responding by upping its deal from $2.45billion to $2.69billion.
Rio argued the Yancol deal offered a faster and more certain timetable, likely to complete this third quarter compared with the first half of 2018 at the earliest for the Glencore proposal.
Rio chief executive Jean-Sebastien Jacques
The revised offer from Yancoal offers compelling value to our shareholders
Rio chief executive Jean-Sebastien Jacques said: “The revised offer from Yancoal offers compelling value to our shareholders.”
Yancoal Chairman Xiyong Li said in a statement: "Yancoal continues to provide Rio Tinto with the certainty of approvals and funding required to facilitate the efficient and timely sale of the Coal & Allied assets."
Rio argued a Yancoal deal offered a faster and more certain timetable
Yancoal, though based in Australia, is 78 percent owned by China's Yanzhou Coal Mining Company.
The sale includes a major stake in the Port Waratah coal-loading facility in Newcastle port, from where most of Australia's thermal coal departs for overseas markets.