BHP raised its bid of taking over Anglo American to £34 billion ($42.7 billion), only to be rebuffed once more, according to a Reuters report. 

In late April, BHP had proposed to acquire Anglo American at £25.08 per share, valuing the deal at £31.1 billion (about $39.1 billion) in an all-share transaction. However, the offer was rejected by Anglo American, citing a significant undervaluation of the company's prospects.

BHP's offer comes with a precondition, that is, Anglo American must spin off its platinum and iron ore operations before the formal acquisition.

In less than a month, BHP has come up with a new offer, increasing it by 15% to £34 billion, but the revised proposal insisted on the divestment before the acquisition.

BHP CEO Mike Henry expressed disappointment, but said BHP continues to believe a combination of the two businesses would deliver significant value for all shareholders, according to the report.

According to analysts and traders, BHP would need to raise its offer to at least £30 per share to successfully acquire Anglo American. At this price, BHP's bid would need to reach £37.2 billion ($46.7 billion), about 20% higher than the initial offer.

BHP's main target in acquiring Anglo American is to get the latter's copper mining assets in South America. Global miners prefer to increase market share through acquisitions rather than investment in new mines.

As the world's largest mining company, a successful acquisition of Anglo American would also make BHP the largest copper producer globally, holding 10% of the market share, in addition to its substantial portfolio of iron ore and coal assets.

(Writing by Alex Guo  Editing by Harry Huo)
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