Chinese battery maker CATL to acquire Canada's Millennial Lithium (updated)

NexMetals Mining

29/09/2021 03:56

(Adds CATL comment)
    Sept 28 (Reuters) - Canada's Millennial Lithium Corp  ML.V 
said late Tuesday Chinese battery maker Contemporary Amperex
Technology Co Ltd (CATL)  300750.SZ  has agreed to buy the miner
for C$376.8 million ($297.3 million), after outbidding
compatriot Ganfeng Lithium  002460.SZ   1772.HK .
    CATL had proposed an offer of C$3.85 per share in cash
earlier this month, Argentina-focused Millennial Lithium said,
outbidding the C$3.60 per share offer made in July by Ganfeng,
one of the world's biggest producers of lithium chemicals used
in electric vehicle (EV) batteries.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nP8N2OQ01F
    The outright acquisition of a lithium miner by CATL follows
its purchase of stakes in Argentina-focused lithium company, Neo
Lithium Corp, as well as in Greenland-focused North American
Nickel and Australia's Pilbara Minerals as it looks to shore up
supply of key battery ingredients.
    CATL, which supplies to carmakers Tesla Inc  TSLA.O  and
Volkswagen AG  VOWG_p.DE , said on Wednesday that the
acquisition is to secure a stable long-term supply of lithium.
    In April, CATL said its subsidiary agreed to take a stake in
China Molybdenum Co's  603993.SS   3993.HK  Kisanfu mine, a
major source of battery metal cobalt, in the Democratic Republic
of Congo (DRC) for $137.5 million.
    Millennial Lithium said the Chinese battery maker has also
reimbursed it for the termination fee of $10 million paid to
Ganfeng, which had until Monday to match the higher bid but
decided against it.
    CATL's late charge puts the brakes on a prolific acquisition
spree by Ganfeng so far in 2021, which has seen it agree to buy
the shares it does not already own in Mexico-focused Bacanora
Lithium  BCNB.L  for $264.5 million, as well as stakes in a
lithium mine in Mali and a salt lake in China for $130 million
and 1.47 billion yuan, respectively.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N2OS0US
    The deal also comes as prices for battery-grade lithium
carbonate in China  AM-995C-LTCB  have more than tripled so far
this year as EV demand roars back from the pandemic fallout.
   

 (Reporting by Sabahatjahan Contractor in Bengaluru and Tom
Daly; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips)
 ((Sabahatjahan.Contractor@thomsonreuters.com; within U.S. +1
646 223 8780; outside the U.S. +91 80 6749 2635))