NYSE-listed Metals Acquisition Corp is gearing up for a dual listing on the ASX, after buying Glencore’s CSA copper mine in New South Wales.Metals Acquisition Corp has hired Barrenjoey and Canaccord Genuity as joint lead managers for the ASX listing, it said in a statement on Friday morning.
It did not put a timeline or raising size on the ASX listing, saying it would depend on market conditions and occur post-closing of the acquisition. “Given the location of the CSA Mine in western NSW and the lack of ASX listed companies with domestic copper exposure, we think that listing MAC on the ASX is logical and provides MAC with access to an additional source of capital in the future,” MAC chief executive Mick McMullen said.
“We believe that recent merger and acquisition activity in the copper sector has highlighted the appetite for domestic copper producers. The few listed Australian copper names are trading at stronger multiples than North American peers, reflective of the significant premium attributed to operating in a Tier 1 jurisdiction and also, the significant pool of mining focused capital in Australia,” he said.
The SPAC bought the underground copper mine earlier this year, paying $US1.1 billion plus a 1.5 per cent copper net smelter royalty and beating IGO in an auction run by Citi Bank of America and UBS. It spelled the end of Glencore’s six-year long wait to sell the mine.