Rio Tinto has successfully raised $9 billion through a U.S. investment-grade bond sale to fund its acquisition of Arcadium Lithium, according to Bloomberg, citing sources.
The debt was structured in eight segments, including 40-year bonds that offered a yield 1.33 percentage points higher than U.S. Treasury bonds.
The bond offering was met with strong investor demand, with peak orders surpassing $50 billion. Rio Tinto was one of 12 issuers selling U.S. investment-grade debt on the same day.
The bond sale was managed by a consortium of banks, including Bank of America, BNP Paribas, Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase, Mizuho Financial Group, and the Royal Bank of Canada.
This capital raise follows the completion of Rio Tinto’s $6.7 billion acquisition of Arcadium Lithium earlier this month.
Sanctioned by the Royal Court of Jersey, the acquisition makes Rio Tinto the ultimate parent company of Arcadium Lithium, which is now rebranded as Rio Tinto Lithium.
Arcadium Lithium, which employs approximately 2,400 people across nine countries, generates 84% of its revenue from Asia, a major hub for lithium demand.
Initially, Rio Tinto considered raising up to $5 billion in equity for acquisitions but ultimately abandoned that plan.
In addition to the acquisition, Rio Tinto’s subsidiary, Rincon Mining, recently named Worley as the lead integration delivery partner (LIDP) for the Rincon Full Potential Lithium Project in Salar Del Rincón, Salta Province, Argentina.
The $2.5 billion project aims to establish a scalable lithium carbonate plant capable of producing 60,000 tonnes per annum (tpa) of battery-grade material from raw brine.
Worley will oversee the detailed design and implementation of the project, working alongside subcontractors, technology providers, and construction contractors.
