DLA Piper

SPECIAL REPORT: Western Australian companies were involved in 235 corporate finance deals worth $6.9 billion in the June quarter, with new advisory firms playing an increasing role, research by Business News has found.

Hancock Prospecting’s $390 million takeover bid for struggling iron ore miner Atlas Iron has been endorsed by independent expert BDO, which found the pricing was fair and reasonable.

MOD Resources has moved to full ownership of its T3 copper project in Botswana, after acquiring UK-based Metal Tiger’s stake of the project in a scrip deal worth $26.6 million.

Northern Star Resources has announced the acquisition of a gold mine in Alaska for $US260 million ($347 million) from Japanese group Sumitomo, along with a $175 million share placement to fund the purchase.

West Perth-based Rolek Resources has launched a $5 million initial public offering, with the company planning a backdoor listing via Shaw River Manganese.

Eastern Goldfields is at risk of collapse, after the $75 million recapitalisation plan it announced in late September was scrapped today.

Sandfire Resources confirmed today it has approached MOD Resources about a potential takeover, with the target proceeding instead with a $15 million capital raising to support work on its T3 copper project.

Listed companies Battery Minerals, Cassini Resources and First Graphene have completed share placements, with the proceeds to help fund their projects in the battery metals sector.

Pacific Energy has entered a takeover deed with investment group QIC, with major shareholder Kenneth Hall set to reap more than $200 million from the deal.

Perth-based gold producer Resolute Mining is adding a fourth mine to its portfolio after striking an agreement to acquire privately owned Toro Gold, which owns the high-margin Mako mine in Senegal.

Northern Star Resources has announced a $193 million takeover offer to acquire Echo Resources, less than an hour after executive chairman Bill Beament said the company was exploring a range of growth options to take advantage of the high gold price.

Investment group QIC will need to increase its $422 million offer for Pacific Energy, after a consortium consisting of OPTrust and Infrastructure Capital Group lobbed a superior offer to the remote power provider.

SPECIAL REPORT: The September quarter update to the BNiQ deals database shows that UBS, Sternship Advisors and Azure Capital have been the most active corporate advisers in the Western Australian market.

Plans by private equity group Siris Capital to acquire ASX-listed Dreamscape Networks have won strong backing at shareholder meetings held in Perth today. The big winners include managing director Mark Evans.

Saracen Mineral Holdings confirmed today it has agreed to buy a 50 per cent stake in Kalgoorlie’s famous Super Pit gold mine with managing director Raleigh Finlayson saying the asset has already delivered positive surprises.

Perth companies Emerald Clinics and Little Green Pharma are seeking to raise up to $18 million ahead of stock market listings as they pursue very different strategies in the medicinal cannabis market.

Azure Capital, Canaccord Genuity and DLA Piper were among the most active advisers on corporate finance deals in 2019.

Perth’s top corporate lawyers have been busy helping their clients navigate the fallout from COVID-19.

Kalium Lakes has formally launched a heavily discounted share placement and rights issue to raise up to $61 million, with the funds to cover an overrun in capital costs at its Beyondie potash project in Western Australia.

Gold developer Ora Banda Mining has launched a $55 million equity raising following the completion of a definitive feasibility study (DFS) at its flagship Davyhurst project in Western Australia’s Eastern Goldfields.

National law firm Thomson Geer has poached one of Perth’s top corporate teams, with Michael Bowen and 10 colleagues moving to a new home for the second time in five years.

Shares in Northern Star Resources and Saracen Mineral Holdings rose strongly today after they announced a merger to create a top 10 global gold producer with a market value of $16 billion.

Allens is poised to substantially broaden its corporate practice in WA after recruiting two partners from rival firm HWL Ebsworth Lawyers, including Bryn Hardcastle.

Several Perth companies executed value-creating mergers and acquisitions last year, none more so than Pilbara Minerals.

Pfizer has made a $100 million bid for WA-founded med-tech company ResApp Health, as it announces a six-month research partnership for COVID-19 products.

Leichhardt Industrial's $280 million solar salt project in the Pilbara has received a major boost, with Melbourne's billionaire Smorgon family buying a 20 per cent stake in the project.

Gold miner Ten Sixty Four is embroiled in more controversy than most companies see in a lifetime, with a boardroom battle underway, a Supreme Court dispute and another mine site death.

A mining software company established 36 years ago by Perth geologist Graeme Tuder has been sold to a US company for $900 million, setting a new record for WA's tech sector.

DLA Piper’s Perth office will recruit two new partners, including a special counsel from Gilbert + Tobin, amid what managing partner Amber Matthews has called a competitive market in town.

Senior editor Mark Beyer talks about his latest article covering the rise of the Aboriginal business sector in the Goldfields.

Strike Energy is hoping to merge with its West Erregulla project partner Warrego Energy in a $227 million deal.

UPDATED: Warrego Energy has taken the unusual step of publicly criticising the two bidders for the company while Mineral Resources has revealed a 16 per cent stake.

Hancock Prospecting has extended the acceptance period for its Warrego Energy bid by 10 days as it trumpets the support of another major shareholder in the target.

Pantoro and Tulla Resources have announced plans for an all-scrip merger of the companies to consolidate ownership of the Norseman gold project in the state's Eastern Goldfields.

Leaders from some of Perth’s major professional services firms have seen big changes in their working lives over three decades.

Westgold Resources has declared its intentions to make a $177 million scrip bid for gold junior Musgrave Minerals, with both companies occupying land in the busy Murchison gold province.

The green energy transition is seen as one of the largest opportunities for WA law firms, with two mid-tier players leading the way.

Mineral Resources will purchase the lithium and base metal rights at Pantoro’s Norseman gold project under a $60 million deal adding to its acquisitive streak.