Nov 24 More than 80 percent of Kirkland Lake Gold shareholders have voted in favor of the mid-tier miner’s takeover of Newmarket Gold, according to two sources familiar with the situation, marking the end of a contentious process.
Over 90 percent of the Newmarket shareholders who voted on the acquisition also backed Kirkland’s all-stock offer, valued at about C$1 billion ($741.34 million) when announced on Sept. 29, the sources said on Thursday on condition of anonymity as the matter is confidential.
Kirkland Lake shares were down 0.3 percent at C$7.34 on the Toronto Stock Exchange on Thursday, while Newmarket’s stock was up 0.3 percent at C$3.43. Silver Standard’s stock was down 0.3 percent at C$13.12.
The merger plan was briefly disrupted after it emerged that Kirkland Lake had rejected three joint offers from South Africa’s Gold Fields Ltd. and Canadian-based Silver Standard Resources Inc. to acquire it. The two withdrew their offer on Nov. 18.
Some investors had argued that Kirkland Lake too hastily rejected those offers. Other shareholders and analysts had publicly said the Kirkland Lake/Newmarket deal offered few synergies because Newmarket’s operations are in Australia while Kirkland Lake’s assets are in Canada.
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