Chile’s Codelco acquires Australia’s Lithium Power International

The deal, valued at $244 million, was closed by way of a scheme of arrangement.

LPI owns the Blanco Project, which is adjacent to Codelco's mining tenements in the Maricunga Salt Flat in Chile.

A scheme of arrangement is a shareholder and court-approved statutory arrangement used to effect 100% acquisitions and requires prior approval of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission, and the company’s shareholders.

As a state-owned company, Codelco also requires approval from the Foreign Investment Review Board.

Codelco was advised on the deal by law firm Carey.

“Apart from the difficulty in reconciling three time zones (London, for the financial advisors, Sydney and Santiago) to coordinate meetings among all advisors, the transaction required a multi-jurisdictional analysis of corporate and tax issues, because LPI has subsidiaries in Canada and the United States,” Carey said in a statement.

Carey’s team was led by partner Rafael Vergara, with partners Cristián Eyzaguirre, Manuel José Garcés, partner and Manuel José Barros, and who were assisted by a team of associates.

Law firm Allens acted as counsel to Codelco in Australia, with a team led by partner Richard Kriedemann, with senior associates Elise Blume and Emma Morris.

McCarthy Tétrault acted as counsel to Codelco in Canada, with a team led by partner Shawn Doyle, and who was assisted by associate Rebecca Ferguson.