- Shareholders of Northern Orion Resources Inc. approved a $1.07-billion takeover by Yamana Gold Inc. Wednesday, but a proposed three-way tie-up of gold miners still faces resistance from Meridian Gold Inc.
The takeover plan was approved by 83 per cent of the votes cast at a Northern Orion meeting, but completion of the deal is conditional on the success of Yamana's takeover bid for Meridian.
Yamana sweetened its offer for Meridian last week, but Meridian repeated Wednesday its recommendation that shareholders reject the unsolicited offer.
"The approval by Northern Orion shareholders ... does not affect the board's view that Yamana's offer fails to adequately compensate Meridian Gold shareholders for the inherent value of the company," Meridian chairman Brian Kennedy said in a statement.
Terms of the Northern Orion bid were unchanged at 0.543 of a Yamana share for each Northern Orion share. This values the Northern Orion bid at about $5.85 a share, or about $1.07-billion.
"With the Northern Orion vote now behind us, the acquisition of Meridian is one major step closer to being completed," Yamana chief executive officer Peter Marrone said in a statement.
"We remain convinced that the strategic fit and value of the combination between the companies is compelling and we look forward to a positive outcome."
Yamana hiked the cash portion of its Meridian bid by 85 cents to $4 a share, and kept the stock component at 2.235 Yamana shares. This values the Meridian offer at about $28.07 a share.
Yamana has also waived due diligence and extended its Meridian bid to Sept. 7 from Aug. 27.