TORONTO, June 13,
2023 /PRNewswire/ - Hudbay Minerals Inc. ("Hudbay")
(TSX: HBM), (NYSE: HBM) and Copper Mountain Mining Corporation
("Copper Mountain") (TSX: CMMC) (ASX: C6C) are pleased to announce
that the shareholders of both Hudbay and Copper Mountain have
approved the resolutions required to consummate the previously
announced plan of arrangement (the "Transaction"). At their
respective special meetings of shareholders on June 13, 2023 (each, a "Meeting"), the
resolutions were passed with the following results:
Hudbay
At the Meeting, the share issuance resolution
required to consummate the Transaction was passed with the
following voting results:
Number of
Votes
FOR
|
Number of
Votes
AGAINST
|
Percentage of
Votes
FOR
|
173,883,694
|
277,212
|
99.84 %
|
Copper Mountain
At the Meeting, Copper Mountain
shareholders supported the Transaction with the following voting
resultsi:
Number of
Votes
FOR
|
Number of
Votes
AGAINST
|
Percentage of
Votes
FOR
|
96,399,411
|
6,780,783
|
93.43 %
|
i
In addition, approximately 93.00% of Copper Mountain
shareholders voted in favour of the Transaction, excluding the
votes required to be excluded by Multilateral Instrument 61-101 –
Protection of Minority Security Holders in Special
Transactions.
|
"The overwhelming shareholder support solidifies the alignment
of the Copper Mountain mine with Hudbay's strategic and financial
objectives and the combined company is well-positioned to create
meaningful value for all shareholders," said Peter Kukielski, President and Chief Executive
Officer of Hudbay. Gil Clausen,
President and Chief Executive Officer of Copper Mountain echoed
this sentiment saying, "We are pleased with the strong endorsement
by the company's shareholders indicating widespread support for the
future of the combined company".
Transaction Highlights
The combination of Hudbay and Copper Mountain is on-strategy
with strong industrial logic that will offer both sets of
shareholders compelling benefits, as highlighted below:
- Scale – A larger-scale platform with three
long-life operating mines with exploration and expansion upside,
three large-scale development projects and one of the largest
mineral resource bases among intermediate copper producers;
- Diversification – A geographically balanced
portfolio in tier-one mining jurisdictions with approximately 55%
of net asset valuei ("NAV") estimated to be from North
American assets and 45% of NAV estimated to be from South American
assets;
- Copper-Focused – A copper-focused portfolio with
expected 2023 copper production of more than 150,000 tonnes in the
second quartile position on the copper cost curveii,
complemented by meaningful gold production;
- Efficiencies – An estimated US$30 millioniii per year of operating
efficiencies and corporate synergies, including approximately
US$20 million per year from operating
cost reductions through the application of Hudbay's operating
efficiency practices to the Copper Mountain mine;
- Deleveraging – Well-positioned for accelerated
deleveraging in the near-term from increased diversification of
cash flows and enhanced exposure to rising copper prices;
- Capital Allocation – An ability to maximize value
from a larger organic growth pipeline by more efficiently
allocating capital to projects that yield the highest risk-adjusted
returns; the combined company's greater cash flow generation and
strong balance sheet will enhance the ability to advance brownfield
expansion opportunities and prudently develop Hudbay's Copper World
project in Arizona, which will
deliver meaningful growth to the combined company; and
- Valuation Re-rating Potential – The strategic and
financial benefits from the Transaction ultimately position the
combined company for a valuation re-rating.
Transaction Effective Date
In addition to shareholder approvals received, the Transaction
is subject to final court approval and the satisfaction of certain
other customary closing conditions for transactions of this nature.
The Toronto Stock Exchange has conditionally approved the listing
of the Hudbay common shares to be issued in connection with the
Transaction, and the requisite regulatory approval for the
Transaction under the Competition Act (Canada) has been obtained. It is currently
anticipated that the effective date of the Transaction will occur
on or about June 20, 2023.
As of the effective date, each Copper Mountain shareholder
(other than any dissenting Copper Mountain shareholders) will
receive 0.381 of a Hudbay share for each Copper Mountain share or
Copper Mountain CDI held. As a result of the Transaction, Copper
Mountain will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hudbay.
Further Information
For further information regarding the Transaction, please refer
to the joint management information circular (the "Circular") filed
by Hudbay and Copper Mountain. The Circular is available on SEDAR
under each company's profile at www.sedar.com, under Hudbay's
profile on EDGAR at www.sec.gov, under Copper Mountain's profile on
the ASX at www.asx.com.au, on Hudbay's website at
https://www.hudbayminerals.com and on Copper Mountain's website at
http://www.cumtn.com.
About Hudbay
Hudbay (TSX, NYSE: HBM) is a diversified mining company with
long-life assets in North and South
America. The company's Constancia operations in Cusco
(Peru) produce copper with gold,
silver and molybdenum by-products. Its Snow Lake operations in Manitoba (Canada) produce gold with copper,
zinc and silver by-products. Hudbay has an organic pipeline that
includes the Copper World project in Arizona and the Mason project in Nevada (United
States), and its growth strategy is focused on the
exploration, development, operation, and optimization of properties
it already controls, as well as other mineral assets it may acquire
that fit its strategic criteria. The value Hudbay creates and the
impact it has are embodied in its purpose statement: "We care about
our people, our communities and our planet. Hudbay provides the
metals the world needs. We work sustainably, transform lives and
create better futures for communities." Hudbay's mission is to
create sustainable value and strong returns by leveraging our core
strengths in community relations, focused exploration, mine
development and efficient operations. Further information about
Hudbay can be found on www.hudbay.com.
About Copper Mountain
Copper Mountain owns 75% of the Copper Mountain Mine, which is
located in southern British
Columbia near the town of Princeton. The Copper Mountain Mine produces
approximately 100 million pounds of copper equivalent on average
per year. Copper Mountain trades on the Toronto Stock Exchange
under the symbol "CMMC" and Australian Securities Exchange under
the symbol "C6C". Additional information is available on Copper
Mountain's web page at www.CuMtn.com.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Information
This release contains certain "forward looking statements" and
certain "forward-looking information" as defined under applicable
Canadian and U.S. securities laws. Forward-looking statements and
information can generally be identified by the use of
forward-looking terminology such as "may", "will", "should",
"expect", "intend", "estimate", "anticipate", "believe",
"continue", "plans" or similar terminology. The forward-looking
information contained herein is provided for the purpose of
assisting readers in understanding management's current
expectations and plans relating to the future. Readers are
cautioned that such information may not be appropriate for other
purposes.
Forward-looking statements relate to future events or future
performance and reflect Hudbay's and Copper Mountain's expectations
or beliefs regarding future events. Forward-looking statements
include, but are not limited to statements with respect to the
consummation and timing of the Transaction; timing of the
consummation of the Transaction; the satisfaction of the conditions
precedent to the Transaction; the strengths, characteristics and
potential of the Transaction; growth potential and expectations
regarding the timing, receipt and anticipated effects of court and
other consents and approvals; non-withdrawal of regulatory
approvals; the impact of the Transaction on shareholders of Hudbay
and Copper Mountain and other stakeholders and other anticipated
benefits of the Transaction. By their very nature, forward-looking
statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other
factors that may cause our actual results, performance or
achievements to be materially different from any future results,
performance or achievements expressed or implied by the
forward-looking statements. Such factors include, amongst others,
risks related to failure to receive the required court approval and
other consents and approvals to effect the Transaction, the
potential of a third party making a superior proposal to the
Transaction, the possibility that the definitive arrangement
agreement could be terminated under certain circumstances.
Forward-looking information are based on management of the
parties' reasonable assumptions, estimates, expectations, analyses
and opinions, which are based on such management's experience and
perception of trends, current conditions and expected developments,
and other factors that management believes are relevant and
reasonable in the circumstances, but which may prove to be
incorrect. Such factors, among other things, include: business
integration risks; fluctuations in general macroeconomic
conditions; fluctuations in securities markets; fluctuations in
spot and forward prices of copper or certain other commodities;
change in national and local governments, legislation, taxation,
controls, regulations and political or economic developments; risks
and hazards associated with the business of mineral exploration,
development and mining (including environmental hazards, industrial
accidents, unusual or unexpected formations pressures, cave-ins and
flooding); discrepancies between actual and estimated metallurgical
recoveries; inability to obtain adequate insurance to cover risks
and hazards; the presence of laws and regulations that may impose
restrictions on mining; employee relations; relationships with and
claims by local communities and indigenous populations;
availability of increasing costs associated with mining inputs and
labour; the speculative nature of mineral exploration and
development (including the risks of obtaining necessary licenses,
permits and approvals from government authorities); and title to
properties.
Hudbay and Copper Mountain undertake no obligation to update
forward-looking information except as required by applicable law.
Such forward-looking information represents management's best
judgment based on the information currently available. No
forward-looking statement can be guaranteed and actual future
results may vary materially. Accordingly, readers are advised not
to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements or
information.
____________________________________
i NAV is based on analyst consensus estimates.
ii Based on Wood Mackenzie's 2023 by-product C1 copper cost
curve (Q4 2022 dataset).
iii Pre-tax annual synergies achieved over the course of 3
years.
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SOURCE Copper Mountain Mining Corporation