Delaware court rules in Sibanye’s favour in Stillwater case

The Delaware Supreme Court in the US has upheld the deal price in Sibanye’s acquisition of the Stillwater Mining company, the precious metals miner said on Friday.

Minority shareholders, representing about 4.5%, had contested Sibanye’s acquisition of Stillwater for $18 (R297) a share in May 2017. Sibanye had acquired Stillwater Mining, a US-based palladium and platinum miner, for $2.2bn in cash.

The Delaware Court of Chancery had ruled in favour of Sibanye in August 2019, and in terms of this ruling, the remaining payment of about $21m was paid during the group’s six months to end-December.

Certain of the dissenting shareholders had filed an appeal with the supreme court of Delaware.

“We are extremely pleased with the affirmation by the supreme court, which confirmed that we followed a process that was fair to all stakeholders,” said CEO Neal Froneman.

“This again validates our decision to oppose the action and protect the interests of our stakeholders against spurious, opportunistic legal proceedings,” he said.

In morning trade, Sibanye-Stillwater’s share was up 1.12% to R52.20, having more than tripled since May 2017.

gernetzkyk@businesslive.co.za