Mis bid for mmx would indeed be dopey. mmx has about $150mill cash with another $700 mill to come from mitsubishi. mis has nothing.
The only reason mis sp remains high is because of the mmx t/o bid. If/when the bid fails, as it seems likely to do, mis sp will retreat to its proper level of about $2-$3.
mmx needed to merge with mis to guarantee its, and thus also mitsubishi's, right to build and control the infrastructure. It had nothing to do with MIS ore body. They are light years behind mmx in that development. MIS won't do any real mining for at least 5 years. MIS current sales are fines left from previous miners. They have done nothing new for years.
mis management have indeed mismanaged over a very long time and the only advantage mis has to offer mmx is the right to bid for the infrastructure development.
IMO the t/o bid by mmx was ill conceived. There are too many people with a vested interest in mis survival. Particularly mmx competitors for infrastructure development.
MMX would have been better served if it proceeded to progress its infrastructure proposals and left MIS alone to linger with its discontented joint venturer.
without mis's govt given right to bid for the infrastructure development mis would have financial difficulty that could only probably be solved with further share issues and dilution of share value. (see 2006 annual report)
MMX Price at posting:
0.0¢ Sentiment: Buy Disclosure: Held