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在线翻译:
szdaily -> Markets -> 
Tianqi close to deal to buy stake in Chile’s SQM
    2018-05-17  08:53    Shenzhen Daily

TIANQI Lithium is nearing a deal to buy a 24 percent stake in Chile’s Sociedad Quimica Y Minera (SQM), one of the world’s biggest lithium producers, for about US$4.3 billion, sources close to the transaction said.

Chengdu-based Tianqi, which is building the world’s biggest lithium processor in Western Australia, is looking to sign a deal to acquire the stake in SQM from Canadian fertilizer company Nutrien Ltd., the sources said.

Nutrien, formed by the merger of Agrium and Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan, must sell its stake in SQM by next March as part of a commitment to regulators approving the deal. Nutrien owns about 30 percent of SQM, which also has significant fertilizer production.

Based on SQM’s market value of US$14.8 billion at Monday’s close, Tianqi would pay a roughly 22 percent premium for the shares in the world’s lowest-cost producer of lithium.

Tianqi’s interest comes as China aggressively promotes electric vehicles — lithium is a key ingredient in rechargeable batteries — to combat air pollution and help domestic carmakers leapfrog the combustion engine to build global brands.

But the SQM stake purchase could hit snags.

Chile’s former government in March asked antitrust regulator FNE to block the stake sale to Chinese firms, saying it would distort the global lithium market and give China an “unfair advantage” in securing strategic resources.

FNE has until August, with the possibility of extensions, to determine whether to launch an investigation.

Shenzhen-listed Tianqi, which is in talks with several institutional investors and banks for financing, plans to fund the deal through bank loans, mezzanine loans and its own working capital, the sources said.

(SD-Agencies)

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