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Aquarius and Impala discuss joint Lonmin bid

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Date: Tuesday 26 Aug 2008

LONDON (ShareCast) - Aquarius Platinum and Impala Platinum have been discussing the possibility of a joint bid for the FTSE 100-listed platinum miner Lonmin, the Daily Telegraph reports.

The talks come after Aquarius approached Lonmin earlier this year, the paper reported, adding that Impala is still studying a possible rival offer.

Earlier this month, Lonmin rejected a £33-a-share bid from Swiss-based Xstrata, which valued the platinum miner at £5bn.

While Lonmin’s share price was well below £33 before the Xstrata offer lifted it closer to that level, earlier this year it sat above £36.

Lonmin’s shares have fallen in line with lower platinum prices, which surged from January after power cuts in South Africa hit production but have since declined amid concerns of reduced demand to make catalytic converters for cars.

Its attempts to fend off Xstrata’s bid have been undermined by the fact that chairman Sir John Craven sold more than two-thirds of his stake in the company for only 103p more than the offer price.

He said he was selling the shares to avoid paying the higher rate of capital gains tax that was introduced in April, but has not yet bought more shares in the company.

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