ArcelorMittal gets regulatory nod to acquire Canadian firm

"... Commissioner of Competition under the Competition Act (Canada) has issued a "no action" letter to ArcelorMittal confirming that the Commissioner of Competition does not intend to challenge ArcelorMittal’s acquisition of Baffinland," ArcelorMittal said in a statement.

Baffinland is a mining company, focused on its Mary River iron ore deposits in Canada, and the takeover is being seen as a step by ArecelorMittal to ensure raw material security.
The deal is valued at around 433 million Canadian dollars.

"Under the terms of the offer, holders of common shares will receive 1.10 Canadian dollars in cash for each common share and holders of 2007 warrants will receive 0.10 Canadian dollars in cash per 2007 warrant," the Luxembourg- headquartered company added.

Earlier, it had offered to acquire all Baffinland's outstanding common shares and common share purchase warrants governed by the warrant indenture dated January 31, 2007.

ArcelorMittal said it had received notification from Industry Canada that the offer was not subject to review under the Investment Canada Act and the Canada Transportation Act.
The board of directors of Baffinland has approved the offer.

The offer for the company's shareholders is open till December 20, unless withdrawn or extended by ArcelorMittal.

ArcelorMittal is the world's leading steel company, with presence in over 20 countries. It accounts for over 70 million tonnes of crude steel production per annum, representing approximately 8 per cent of world steel output.

It is listed in New York, Amsterdam, Paris, Brussels, Luxembourg and on the Spanish stock exchanges of Barcelona, Bilbao, Madrid and Valencia.