By Dhirendra Tripathi

Investing.com – Turquoise Hill (NYSE:) stock surged 30% in premarket Monday after Rio Tinto Group (NYSE:) offered to buy the 49% stake it doesn’t already own in the company.

Turquoise hill is worth approximately C$6.84 trillion at C$34 cash offer (around $26.5).

Rio Tinto reported that the parties have not reached an agreement and they cannot guarantee any transaction.

The company’s purchase is expected to breathe life into its much delayed Oyu Tolgoi and gold project in Mongolia. Following the agreement made between the two companies and Mongolian officials to advance the project, the proposed transaction will be completed.

Rio, as part of plans to speed up work on the project, had agreed in December to repay a $2.3billion loan to Mongolia. 34% is owned by the Mongolian government, while Turquoise Hill holds the remainder. Although the financing agreement was signed for the mine in 2015, the project is still in turmoil. Mongolian politicians frequently called for a renegotiated original investment agreement.

Oyu Tolgoi contains one of largest copper reserves in the entire world. The project’s close proximity to China, the largest market for electric vehicles in the world, makes it attractive.

The copper requirements for EVs are three to four times higher than those of conventional internal combustion engines.

According to Reuters, Oyun-Erdene Luvsannamsrai is the Mongolian Prime Minister and has pledged to finish the expansion underground section by 2023.