Hamster thoughts,.....
Change a few names and dates in the passage below these hamster thoughts, and it's deja vu. De Bums have lost!! The market is reacting by selling knowing they have lost. ARP dropped after Barrick's first stink bid failed, then climbed a week later on the announcement of Barrick's second stink bid. Eventually we got around $7.50 in shares of Homestake, but it was very difficult to play the ups and downs because the stock reacted immediately. No white knight made a bid until Barrick was out of the game after their second bid was rejected by the shareholders. No one wanted to challenge Barrick,... no one will likely challenge De Bums until shareholders dump them and their stinky offer.
Hostile Takeover Bid by Barrick Gold Corporation
On December 9, 1998, Barrick Gold Corporation announced that it intended to make a take-over bid for all of the outstanding shares of Argentina Gold Corp. for C$4.00 cash per share. This original offer expired on January 9, 1999 and was then subsequently extended to January 19, 1999. On January 18, 1999 Barrick Gold Corporation announced that it would increase its offer to C$5.00 cash per share and extend the offer further to January 29, 1999.
Argentina Gold retained Loewen, Ondaatje, McCutcheon Limited to provide an independent fairness opinion on both the C$4.00 and the C$5.00 offer. Upon review by a Special Committee, Argentina Gold’s Board recommended rejection. In making the recommendation the Board concluded that:
• The Barrick offers of C$4.00 and C$5.00 were inadequate, opportunistic and coercive
• In the opinion of LOM, the offers significantly undervalue Argentina Gold shares and was inadequate
• The market clearly recognizes that the Barrick offers were inadequate
• Barrick has rushed its initial offer in an attempt to acquire 100% of the Veladero Project before further exploration results are announced
• The Barrick offers were inadequate and failed to give recognition to the underlying fundamental value of Argentina Gold and its very prospective exploration properties
• Barrick has confirmed that the value of Argentina Gold is substantially greater than its offers
• Barrick’s offers are its latest coercive attempt to obtain control of the Veladero Project without paying fair value
In view to maximizing shareholder value on behalf of all Argentina Gold shareholders, the Companay appointed ScotiaMcLeod Inc. as its financial advisor to assist the Company in considering all alternatives available to Barrick’s unacceptable offers.
In addition to the Veladero project, Argentina Gold holds the very promising Del Carmen project, Rio Frio, Pancho Arias (Santa Rosa), Vicuna Pampa and several more. All totalled, Argentina Gold has a gold exploration portfolio comprising over 560,000 hectares which covers 80% of the El Indio gold belt in Argentina.
Water rights have been secured, ample flat land exists for any future mining operations, high-grade potential “starter-pit” areas have been defined and a mining treaty between Argentina and Chile is in the final stages of approval - all this placing Argentina Gold’s properties in a very strategic position in a region growing exponentially in importance for gold exploration.
We would like to thank all our shareholders for their support over the last few months and we look forward to continued exploration success as our drilling program progresses.
ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD
“J. Patricio Jones”
President
January 27, 1999 |
