HopgoodGanim Lawyers

Directors of junior miner Kangaroo Resources has given a tick to a bid from Indonesian coal miner PT Bayan which values the company at $515 million.

Local gold producers Silver Lake Resources and Doray Minerals have announced a merger to create a mid-tier company to be led by Silver Lake managing director Luke Tonkin.

Indonesian coal mining group PT Bayan will pay $226 million to acquire the remaining shares in ASX-listed coal play Kangaroo Resources it does not already own, after the Supreme Court of Western Australia approved the takeover deal.

SPECIAL REPORT: Global players are converging on WA as resources assets become increasingly attractive in the international arena.

Pantoro is set to acquire a 50 per cent stake in the Central Norseman gold project from Norseman Gold in a cash and scrip deal worth $45 million, and will raise $43 million via a share placement to fund the transaction.

International consulting group ERM has acquired West Perth-based mining consultancy CSA Global for an undisclosed amount.

Silver Lake Resources is set to acquire EganStreet Resources in a scrip deal worth $52 million, as the gold miner seeks to bolster its Deflector operations with a new ore source.

Russia-based Nordgold is looking to expand its operations in Africa by making a takeover bid for Cardinal Resources after increasing its stake in the West Perth-based company to nearly 20 per cent.

Cardinal Resources has received an all-cash takeover bid from Chinese producer Shandong Gold, which has offered to buy the West Perth-based company for 60 cents per share.

A flood of money for goldminers has defined WA’s corporate finance market this year, with Canaccord Genuity and Macquarie Capital leading the charge.

Russian-owned Nordgold has increased its bid to acquire Cardinal Resources to around $347 million, which trumps a competing proposal from Shandong Gold that has already been endorsed by Cardinal.

Takeover target Cardinal Resources has received a higher purchase offer from China-based Shandong Gold, after competing buyer Nordgold upped its bid last week.

Russian-owned Nordgold has made a new offer to buy Cardinal Resources, trumping a competing bid from Chinese company Shandong Gold by around $26 million.

After a rocky start to the year, confidence in WA’s gold sector is driving economic activity, with investment and exploration up.

A Ghanaian business has joined the battle to buy out Perth-based Cardinal Resources, topping previous bids for the gold explorer with a new cash offer of $1.05 per share.

Several Perth companies executed value-creating mergers and acquisitions last year, none more so than Pilbara Minerals.

Subiaco-based Cyprium Metals is set to acquire copper assets in WA from Metals X while announcing a $90 million capital raising to help fund the purchase.

Canadian engineering giant Stantec has announced its fifth Australian acquisition in recent years with the purchase of Perth-based Engenium.

The man at the centre of a $126 million alleged betting scandal has been placed in bankruptcy by the Federal Court, forced to represent himself amid what he described as a “media frenzy”.

There has been some notable progress for women in law, but they have come off a low base.

Law firms Steinepreis Paganin and Thomson Geer and stockbroker Canaccord Genuity were the top deal makers in the June half.

Favourable market conditions have led to a suite of new gold producers and projects.

Goldminer Red 5 has agreed to sell its assets in the Philippines for $US19 million, in a bid to further focus on developing its King of the Hills project in WA.

Mining Minister Bill Johnston has vowed to safeguard the state’s tenements register amid backlash from industry and legal professionals over a court ruling that threatens to nullify a host of permits.

AIC Mines has laid plans to make a $36 million scrip bid for recently-listed explorer Demetallica, sending the target’s share price up 42.5 per cent.

A joint venture between Tianqi Lithium and IGO has acquired an early-stage growth opportunity by striking a deal to purchase ASX-listed explorer Essential Metals.

Thomson Geer's Perth office has recruited two partners from HopgoodGanim in a bid to bolster the firm's mining and energy services offering.

ASX-listed goldminer Red 5 has announced chair and director Kevin Dundo will resign after 13 years with the company.

Mark Zeptner-led goldminer Ramelius Resources is continuing an acquisitive streak by launching a friendly scrip takeover for Eastern Goldfields explorer Breaker Resources.

Mineral Resources has taken up a substantial stake in ASX-listed Essential Metals, a lithium explorer currently in the crosshairs of Tianqi Lithium and IGO.

Develop Global has lined up a $150 million scrip deal to buy lithium junior Essential Metals, after securing the backing of major shareholder Mineral Resources.

Shares in Subiaco-based AIC Mines closed 9 per cent down to 53.5 cents per share on Friday, following news that the company plans to raise $57.2 million in order to advance its Queensland-based Jericho copper mine.

National mid-tier law firm HopgoodGanim is set to merge with Perth’s Butlers Lawyers and Notaries, adding 17 staff to its WA team.

HopgoodGanim and a former partner of the law firm have been sued over advice relating to Chris Brown and his alleged multi-million-dollar betting scheme.