Shareholders Approve Freewest/Cliffs Plan
Cliffs Natural Resources Inc. (NYSE: CLF) (Paris: CLF) has announced that shareholders of Freewest Resources Canada Inc. (TSX-V: FWR) have approved a previously announced plan of arrangement for Cliffs to acquire the Montreal-based exploration company at CAD$1.00 per share.
The plan of arrangement, having been unanimously supported by the board and management of Freewest, was approved by approximately 82% of the votes cast by shareholders present in person or represented by proxy at the special shareholders’ meeting held today.
Joseph A. Carrabba, Cliffs chairman, president and chief executive officer, said, “We look forward to developing what we consider to be one of the premier chromite deposits in the world. This long-term project positions Cliffs to become the sole North American primary chromite and ferrochrome producer/exporter. It is also consistent with the Company’s strategy to broaden its product offerings and customer base through a mineral regarded as a strategic resource by many countries.”
The transaction is expected to close on Jan. 27, 2010, subject to customary conditions and consent of the court. Assuming Jan. 27, 2010, becomes the effective time, Freewest shareholders will receive value equal to CAD$1.00, comprised of 0.0201 Cliffs shares for each Freewest share owned. Under the plan of arrangement, the fraction of a Cliffs share received is based on the Cliffs volume weighted average price for the five New York Stock Exchange trading days from Jan. 15 to Jan. 22, 2010.
About Cliffs Natural Resources Inc.
Cliffs Natural Resources Inc. is an international mining and natural resources company. A member of the S&P 500 Index, we are the largest producer of iron ore pellets in North America, a major supplier of direct-shipping lump and fines iron ore out of Australia and a significant producer of metallurgical coal. With core values of environmental and capital stewardship, our colleagues across the globe endeavor to provide all stakeholders operating and financial transparency as embodied in the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) framework. The Company is organized through three geographic business units:
The North American business unit is comprised of six iron ore mines owned or managed in Michigan, Minnesota and Canada and two coking coal mining complexes located in West Virginia and Alabama. The Asia Pacific business unit is comprised of two iron ore mining complexes in Western Australia and a 45% economic interest in a coking and thermal coal mine in Queensland, Australia. The Latin America business unit includes a 30% interest in the Amapa Project, an iron ore project in the state of Amapa in Brazil.
Other projects under development include a biomass production plant in Michigan and Ring of Fire chromite properties in Ontario, Canada. Over recent years, Cliffs has been executing a strategy designed to achieve scale in the mining industry and focused on serving the world’s largest and fastest growing steel markets.
Posted Jan. 26 .10
