The Financial Post reports in its Thursday, July 7, edition that for chief executive officer Scott Perry, Centerra Gold's $1.1-billion (U.S.) takeover of Thompson Creek Metals is largely about valuation. The Post's Peter Koven writes that as long as Centerra relies on the Kumtor mine in Kyrgyzstan for all its free cash flow, it is certain to trade at a big discount to peers. Political risk has been a problem for Centerra since Kumtor opened in 1997, and it escalated into a full-blown crisis this year as the company launched an arbitration case and had its office raided by Kyrgyzstani authorities.
Buying Thompson Creek, which owns the large Mount Milligan mine in British Columbia, makes Centerra look a lot less frightening to investors.
Mr. Perry says Centerra is trading at about 0.7 times net asset value by analyst estimates. By comparison, industry peers are trading at about 1.3 or 1.4 times NAV. He is confident this deal will shrink the valuation gap.
Mr. Perry says: "I think (the acquisition) should really underpin a strong rerating going forward. Half our net asset value now is domiciled in Canada. I really think it has favourably changed the complexion of the company."
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