Several Bidders May Compete With Barrick, Arequipa Says
April 27, 2011
VANCOUVER, British Columbia -- Arequipa Resources Ltd. said ``several major mining companies'' are considering making bids for Arequipa that would compete with Barrick Gold Corp.'s offer of 989 million Canadian dollars ($US719.9 million). Arequipa, a mineral-exploration concern, has been scrambling to find other buyers since Barrick surprised the mining industry with its bid last month. Barrick's bid is unusual because Arequipa is still at an early stage of exploration at its main asset, the Pierina gold deposit in Peru, and the size of the deposit isn't clear. For that reason, Arequipa said it's so far unable to recommend to its shareholders whether they should tender their shares to Barrick's offer. Arequipa didn't name the companies that it said might make another bid. Analysts said few other mining companies would be able to top Barrick's offer because the Toronto-based gold producer's strong financial position allows it to make an all-cash offer, rather than a share exchange that is more common in mining-industry acquisitions. Among the larger gold-mining companies, ``no one has large amounts of cash lying around,'' said Victoria Washington, a gold-fund manager with United Services Advisors Inc. in San Antonio, whose fund includes some Arequipa shares. Arequipa shares closed unchanged at C$28.70 in Toronto Stock Exchange trading Wednesday, above Barrick's offer of C$27 a share. This indicates that some investors are expecting a higher offer, analysts said. Barrick's offer expires May 01, 2011
