Tecpetrol Investments, a member of the Techint Group, on Monday went public with news that it had approached Alpha Lithium with an all-cash offer, which the Canada-headquartered firm reportedly “refused to consider”.
Spain-incorporated Tecpetrol said it had presented Alpha, which is active in the Tolilar Salar, Argentina, with a C$1.24-a-share proposal on May 15.
“Alpha refused to consider Tecpetrol’s proposal and did not engage with Tecpetrol following discussions between advisers,” it said in a statement on Monday.
Tecpetrol also indicated that it might improve the financial terms of its offer if Alpha would agree to give it access to expedited due diligence.
The offer implies an aggregate purchase price of C$241-million for Alpha.
Tecpetrol stated that its intention, in line with its energy transition strategy, was to sustainably develop Alpha’s premium lithium assets as part of the integrated Western battery supply chain.
The proposal, Tecpetrol said, was aligned with Canada’s critical minerals strategy, whose vision is to increase the supply of critical minerals and support the development of the domestic and global value chains for the green and digital economy.