Aditya Birla Group raises bid for Australian iron ore miner Northern Iron to $532 mn

Aditya Birla Group has raised its takeover offer for Northern Iron, Tata Steel Europe's iron ore supplier, by about 4 per cent to A$518 million ($532 million), two months after the Australian company rejected the offer as being too low.

The latest sweetened A$1.40 per share offer is a 75-per cent premium to Northern Iron's closing stock price on the Australian Stock Exchange yesterday.

The offer, which is valid for 30 days, is subject to several conditions, including due-diligence, meetings with Northern Iron's management and site visits.

In May, Aditya Birla Group had offered between $1.28 and $1.35 a share, but the Perth-based company rejected the proposal saying that the offer failed to reflect the improvements in quality and production rates that it expects to achieve at its iron-ore mines in Norway.

But the company later offered limited due-diligence to see whether the Aditya Birla Group could return with a better offer.

Northern Iron said in a statement that its board would consider the latest offer and make a decision within a week.