Barrick sticks by offer for Acacia
Barrick Gold has today stood by its offer for Acacia Mining, saying that the London-listed firm had overstated the value of its assets.
Barrick, which is the biggest shareholder in the company, said last month that it was mulling a bid which valued Acacia at $787m. The bid was questioned as Barrick valued the firm at $1.3bn in its last annual report.
But last week the company said that some of the gold miner’s assumptions about its assets were not supported by fact.
Earlier this week Acacia, which is in a tax dispute with the Tanzanian government, hit out at Barrick.
It said the shareholder had “undermined” its efforts to negotiate with the Tanzanian government by opening talks directly with the regime.
It also said that Barrick’s valuation did not take into account the value of its exploration and development assets.
Barrick has since said that Tanzania will refuse to speak to Acacia itself. It says the proposed takeover is a way out for shareholders.