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Gold/Mining/Energy : Inco-Voisey Bay Nickel [ T.N.V] -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Kitskid who wrote (1456)	11/25/2000 1:38:07 AM
From: Kitskid	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1615

Maybe Brian Tobin with his new found ethical expertise can give an opinion on this. --------------------------<snip>------------------------ theglobeandmail.com Inco could face court action over VBN bid Voisey's Bay discoverer threatens lawsuit if firm gets full control of nickel deposit Reuters News Agency Friday, November 24, 2000 Inco Ltd. will face a court challenge if it succeeds in buying back two-thirds of the outstanding shares in Voisey's Bay, its huge undeveloped nickel deposit in Eastern Canada, a founder and major investor said yesterday. Jean-Raymond Boulle said in a telephone interview from Luxembourg that he would challenge the fair value of the shares in court if he is unable to prevent Inco from acquiring the 67-per-cent stake at a special shareholders meeting on Nov. 28 in Toronto. Mr. Boulle, an international businessman, discovered the Voisey's Bay nickel deposit with businessman Robert Friedland in 1994. Mr. Boulle and Mr. Friedland were searching for copper in Newfoundland's remote northern Labrador when they stumbled on the nickel deposit. Two years later, they sold it to global nickel giant Inco for $4.3-billion. Toronto-based Inco has offered $7.50 a share and 0.45 of an Inco common share purchase warrant for each VBN share. Mr. Boulle said he would vote against the company's plan during the proxy vote next week because he considered the offer unfair. A group of U.S. investors also has said it would reject the buyback offer. Together, Mr. Boulle and the Americans control about 10 per cent of the 26 million outstanding shares. "I've made a decision to vote against it and I've asked my attorneys if it does go forward with two-thirds to ask the Canadian courts for fair value," Mr. Boulle said. "The Voisey's Bay shares are worth a lot more than what they are offering," he added. This is the second time Inco has made a bid for the VBN shares. In October, it failed to get the necessary 90-per-cent support to force in the remaining VBN shares. Mr. Boulle said he also wants to hold on to the shares because he has confidence that Mike Sopko, Inco president and chief executive officer, would win a four-year battle with the Newfoundland provincial government to develop the deposit, which has a planned production of 107 million pounds of nickel a year. Officials in Newfoundland have refused to issue a mining permit until Inco agrees to build a $1-billion smelter in the province. Inco has said the proposal is not economic. Inco wants full control of the deposit, and a buyback would avoid future conflict between VBN and other shareholders, it has stated. The company has said its offer is based on an independent valuation of its VBN shares by Rothschild & Sons, which gave a range of $6.50 to $12 a share for the fair market value. Analysts have said they are confident Inco will win the proxy vote since Canadian gold miner Franco-Nevada Mining Corp., the largest VBN shareholder, has agreed to tender its 37-per-cent stake in the deposit. Mr. Boulle said he did not intend to part with his approximately one million VBN shares.