BHP, Lundin bid $3.25bn bid for Filo to expand copper presence

(Sharecast News) - Australian Mining giant BHP rebounded from its failure to buy rival Anglo American and announced it would expand its copper interests in South America via a joint venture with Canada's Lundin Mining which in turn would offer $3.25bn to acquire Filo Corp. The joint venture will hold the Filo del Sol and Josemaria projects around the Argentine-Chile border, BHP said on Tuesday.

BHP and Lundin have offered $33 Canadian dollars per Filo share, a 12.2% premium to the closing price on Monday, with BHP stumping up $2.1bn.

A previous attempt to broaden its presence in the copper market collapsed in May when BHP abandoned a $49bn bid to take over Anglo American, which had rebuffed three proposed offers from the world's biggest miner.

Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com