"...all that Cliffs need to offer KWG is to mine Big Daddy first."

Or trade an equivalent share of Black Thor, as was once proposed to Cliffs by KWG (is I recall well).

Good summary of what is at stake, rj.

I agree that the next few months should be exciting! Don't forget that the RoF project is William Boor's baby - he was appointed just days before Cliffs put out their infamous catch 22 proposal to SPQ/KWG in the Spring of 2010. He now finds his Company in a similar situation : they appeals and they get no road for months maybe years, or they buy KWG out and they pay the big price! Humiliating to say the least. He has to find a way quick to get Cliffs out of this mess, or we could well see a resignation PR'ed shortly...

RoF is not a minor play for Cliffs, they already spent half a billon+ and counting in this project, and I'm sure some stakeholders really wonders how is it possible that we do not have a solid grip on this crucial roadbed despite having 16%+ of our 'partner' shares, and a whole or majority ownership of all their RoF claims!!! I would. Would you? Mr Boor is ... I believe he's not the only one at Cliffs who are "very disappointed" with the situation...

Three years have passed and Cliffs is stuck at the very same point! They "masterfully" saved a 150MM$ take-over with a deemed hocus-pocus move, but I'm afraid they did save nothing after all!

"we only need to acquire either KWG or Spider in order to satisfy our strategic objectives with respect to the Big Daddy deposit. It would be a satisfactory outcome for Cliffs if either proposed acquisition were successful, leaving Cliffs as majority owner and operator of Big Daddy with one junior partner. "

This was a bad move! I feel I repeat myself, sorry.

But I read elsewhere that it's all KWG's fault, sliding away the fact that Frank Smeenk had no choice to withstand the siege in order to keep his company alive. When the aggressor is big and tall, one usually does'nt call him "bully". A Conquérant rather. Until he bites the dust!

Plan B? They already used their Plan B which was the 2010 "brilliant" coup!

Plan A was to purchase their partner minority share at a fair price. Lets rewind and get back to it now!

Or adopt Plan C: arrange the JV so that KWG could benefit of the first property to be mined, be it BD or BT!

This 'major setback' Cliffs is at now was not deviced by the 'little bully', but by the "Great Conqueror", now with some dust on his nose. BTW, who was that middle-age Conqueror's name...???

GLTA.