Australia's Hancock Prospecting has further raised its stake in domestic lithium developer Liontown Resources to 19.9pc, according to the firm today.
This puts the firm in a dominant position to either make or break US producer Albemarle's A$6.6bn ($4.2bn) bid for Liontown. Hancock, controlled by iron ore magnate Gina Rinehart and Liontown's largest shareholder, said it "looks forward to having a prominent influence on Liontown's future". Hancock will have to make a rival bid for Liontown should it raise its Liontown stake to above the current 19.9pc.
Albemarle in early September submitted a new non-binding proposal for Liontown, after multiple bids were rejected since October 2022. Albemarle's bid, made through a scheme of arrangement, requires 75pc support from Liontown investors voting in the ballot. But in practice it may be blocked with a stake lower than 25pc depending on voter turnout. Hancock's current stake held in Liontown means it has an extremely high probability of success if it plans to block Albemarle's bid.
Liontown's Kathleen Valley project in Western Australia aims to produce its first lithium concentrate in mid-2024. It is one of Australia's largest hard rock lithium deposits with a mineral resource of 156mn t grading 1.4pc lithium oxide and 130ppm tantalum pentoxide.
