Surely they arent buying into AQA by simply hoping the stock they buy gets taken out for a higher sum, if so then Chris Ellison perhaps woke up one day thinking he wanted to get into the Hedge Fund game.
Makes more sense they want a seat at the table given they have lost the FMG ore processing contract and see the API iron ore project as a potential source of work. Seems an expensive way however to get engineering and processing work, and also potentially alienating Baosteel and Aquila who may be the new owners shortly.
More concerning is MIN being a natural partner for the Bucklands solution and having their capital tied up in this confusing stake/play in AQA? Or it could show MIN strategically wanting to ramp up its growth prospects with Bucklands still being a desirable opportunity.
At the very least I think it may show some strategic investors using the current weakness in the IO price as a buying opportunity and hopefully this bodes well for Bucklands partnering.
IOH Price at posting:
88.0¢ Sentiment: Buy Disclosure: Held