Rio Tinto Limited (ASX:RIO, NYSE:RIO, LSE:RIO) has bid $554 million to acquire a Canadian uranium explorer called Hathor Exploration Limited (TSX:HAT).
Hathor’s board has unanimously backed the global miner’s all-cash offer, trumping a hostile bid by Cameco Corporation (NYSE:CCJ) by around 11 per cent.
Rio says acquiring Hathor would increase its presence in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan.
Media reports have speculated that Cameco is expected to boost its bid and Hathor could be in play for a while.
In the first six months of the 2011 calendar year Rio Tinto booked a net profit of $7.5 billion.
