Chinese battery materials giant Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt has secured regulatory approval from Australia’s Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB) for its proposed US$210 million acquisition of Atlantic Lithium, clearing a key hurdle ahead of a decisive shareholder vote on Ghana’s inaugural lithium mine developer.
The Huayou acquisition of Atlantic Lithium has cleared an important regulatory hurdle after Australia’s Foreign Investment Review Board raised no objection to the proposed transaction.
Atlantic Lithium announced on Thursday, September 17, that the Australian Treasury had issued written notification approving the deal under the country’s Foreign Acquisitions and Takeovers Act.
The decision satisfies one of the conditions attached to the scheme implementation deed signed by Atlantic Lithium and Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt Company Limited on May 7, 2026.
Huayou intends to acquire Atlantic Lithium through an Australian scheme of arrangement. The target company is developing the Ewoyaa Lithium Project in Ghana, which it describes as the country’s prospective first lithium mine.
The approval matters, but the acquisition is not complete. Several regulatory and legal steps remain.
Shareholders to vote in November
Atlantic Lithium said the transaction was still subject to other regulatory approvals, support from the required majority of shareholders and approval by the Supreme Court of Western Australia.
A scheme booklet explaining the proposed acquisition and the reasons behind the board’s recommendation is expected to be sent to shareholders in October. Court approval will be required before that document is dispatched.
The shareholder meeting is expected to take place in November, with implementation targeted for December 2026 if the remaining conditions are satisfied or waived.
The booklet will include an independent expert’s report and an indicative timetable for completing the transaction.
Atlantic Lithium has urged investors to read the document fully before deciding how to vote. That vote will be decisive. FIRB clearance removes a regulatory obstacle, but it does not replace shareholder consent.
Board maintains support for deal
The Atlantic Lithium board continues to back the acquisition unanimously, provided no superior proposal emerges and an independent expert concludes that the transaction is in shareholders’ best interests.
“The Atlantic Lithium Board continues to unanimously recommend that shareholders vote in favour of the Scheme,” the company said.
Board members also intend to vote all shares they hold or control in favour of the deal, subject to the same qualifications.
The company’s announcement did not indicate any change to the transaction’s commercial terms or the planned development of Ewoyaa following the Australian approval.
Ghana interest remains firmly on Ewoyaa
For Ghana, attention will remain on what a change in Atlantic Lithium’s ownership could mean for the Ewoyaa project and the country’s entry into commercial lithium production.
The project has become central to Ghana’s effort to build a position in the critical minerals market. Questions around financing, local participation, value addition and the timing of mine development will follow the transaction through its remaining stages.
FIRB’s decision deals specifically with Australia’s foreign investment requirements. It should not be read as approval from Ghanaian authorities or confirmation that the acquisition has closed.
What it does is clear one more item from the deal’s regulatory checklist. The harder test now moves to shareholders, the outstanding regulators and the Western Australian court.
If each stage proceeds as planned, Huayou could assume control of Atlantic Lithium before the end of December.
READ ALSO: Ghana Cuts Fuel Exports to Burkina Faso, Mali to Protect Local Supply
