We have been following Nautilus Mineral for some time. As a quick recap, they are the company that is actively pursuing the mining of massive sulfide deposits, i.e. hydrothermal vent chimneys, from the seafloor particularly off of Papua New Guinea. Since July their stock has taken a huge plummet from over 2.5 Canadian dollars per share to a 50 week low of 0.27 in early December. Interesting that investors are skeptical of the company’s business model.
Word on the street earlier this week was that Nautilus website was down and a hostile takeover imminent.
Then today online I see this
Toronto, Ontario, January 8, 2013 – Nautilus Minerals Inc. (the “Company” or “Nautilus”) has become aware through a news release dated January 7, 2013 that Michael Bailey, an individual, and an entity controlled by him, intend to make an unsolicited offer to purchase all of the outstanding shares of Nautilus.
Nautilus has not had any contact with Mr. Bailey or any entity controlled by him with respect to this unsolicited offer and has no prior knowledge thereof. Nautilus is therefore unable to make any determinations regarding the offer or its validity.
The Board of Directors of Nautilus will consider the unsolicited offer if and when it is formally made. Nautilus advises its shareholders not to take any action in respect of such offer, if and when made, until shareholders have received further communication from the Board of Directors of Nautilus.
Interesting indeed.
This just on the wire
CA:NUS +5.08%
Jan 11, 2013 (ACCESSWIRE-TNW via COMTEX) — Dear Fellow Nautilus Minerals Shareholders,
I am a long time follower and shareholder of Nautilus Corporation (“NUS”). To my dismay I have watched this company continue to overpromise and underdeliver. I have completely lost confidence in the management team now led intermittently by Michael Johnston and previously by non executive executive board member Stephen Rogers. The day that Mr. Rogers was appointed President and Chief Operating Officer of NUS four years ago, NUS stock traded at $2.50 per share. In the last 5 days prior to January 9 and our subsequent hostile tender for the shares at $0.97, NUS stock traded at an average of $$0.55 per share. The decline in share price over this four year period represents the clearest indication to us that the management of NUS has failed, and that the company will not succeed without a new management team and a drastically different strategy. As the largest shareholder of NUS are Metalloinvest, Anglo American plc, Mawarid Mining LLC and we are urging to join our tender as we are unwilling to put our trust in the existing board and Mr. Johnston to turn this company around.
We are now offering a clear choice that we view as a win-win for shareholders. Shareholders can win by selling their shares to us in our tender for $1.10. Or, shareholders can win by voting for our slate of directors in our proxy fight to replace the existing board, and implementing a shareholder friendly business strategy – the cornerstone of which is the building of the and eventual spin off of the Solwara 1 Project as a separate publicly traded mining technology company.
We will be releasing our full slate of director nominees before next week’s deadline. At this time we are announcing the nomination of Julian Malnic, the former President and CEO of Nautilus, to the new board on our slate of nominees and assisting us in developing an independent strategy to maximize the value of the Solwara 1. Mr. Malnic was President and then CEO of Nautilus until 1997. Mr. Malnic stated in an email to me, “I have been very unhappy with the Board of Nautilus. The problem for instance with the PNG Government has been generated by the Board itself, in my view.”
I have made several attempts contact and hold open discussions with Nautilus Minerals Inc and the current CEO via email and the management,since my initial announcement of my intention to launch a hostile offer on Monday, however they have been operating at the same pace at which they operate the company. So I urge you my fellow shareholders to not let this go on any longer, let’s stop the bleeding and unlock share value trapped in the underlying assets by removing the current management and drastically changing the strategy for the company.
Mr. Johnston and Mr. Rogers have been telling shareholders for years that better times are right around the corner and that he has the right people in place to succeed. Yet every year the start up for NUS is one more year away. The “right people” have left or been moved around and newer “right people” have taken their place. We believe that our tender offer and proxy fight provide the opportunity for a victory for shareholders now in the form of two choices: (i) $1.10 in cash or (ii) ownership in both Solwara 1 as a separate public company, and in the remaining NUS, the assets of which will be under a new board focused on increasing shareholder value.
Very truly yours,
/s/ Michael Bailey
SOURCE MICHAEL BAILEY
I concur 100%
i agree you cannot come to any other conclusion that something is not right at nus i think they are just playing for time to get wages