Goldcorp bid not Osisko’s only option, CEO says

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Osisko Mining Corp.'s chief executive said his company has plenty of alternatives to Goldcorp Inc.'s hostile bid.

First Sean Roosen will see how a Quebec court will rule after it hears Osisko's allegations in early March that Goldcorp breached a confidentiality agreement between the miners.

Goldcorp denies the accusation.

If that does not derail Goldcorp's offer, Mr. Roosen said there are other options.

"I can tell you that my solutions don't involve any particular person or company," he said in an interview.

"We have many ways to remedy the situation on the value here. In due course and in due time we shall execute."

Goldcorp is offering $2.26 in cash and 0.146 of a Goldcorp share for every Osisko share.

That is currently worth $6.69, below Osisko's Tuesday closing price of $7.02.

Osisko has signed confidentiality agreements with other companies, which are examining the miner's main asset the Canadian Malartic gold mine, according to a source.

Mr. Roosen, who led Osisko as it developed the project, said there are lots of opportunities for the mine.

Canadian Malartic has 10 million ounces of unmined gold reserves and started production in 2011.

"We have a lot of firepower with the asset that is sitting here based on the cash flow that we have coming out of it," he said.

The company earned $10.5-million in the last quarter of 2013. That was down from the year-earlier profit of $12.9-million when the average selling price of gold was 25 per cent higher.

Its cash flow for the period was $72.5-million, higher than last year's $64.6-million.

Mr. Roosen is playing up the company's Quebec ties, where the mine and its corporate headquarters are located.

According to Mr. Roosen, Osisko is the 17th largest company in Quebec and the biggest miner in the province.

"This has been very successful company for the Quebec government," he said.

Although the much larger Goldcorp has cleared anti-trust hurdles, the company is based out of Vancouver. That would likely lead to job losses at Osisko's Montreal headquarters if Goldcorp's bid was successful.

Mr. Roosen said that Osisko was the poster child "for everything that the Quebec government is focused on" in terms of stimulating resource investment, entrepreneur development and the evolution of head offices in the province.

Even if Goldcorp promised not to cut jobs, Mr. Roosen said it would not be the same.

"Everybody in Quebec is well aware that subsidiaries are not the same as head office," he said.