YRI:CC - Gold Fields shareholder OK for Yamana deal still 'work in progress' CEO says

Gold Fields ( NYSE: GFI ) CEO Chris Griffith said on Tuesday that convincing the company's shareholders to back its takeover offer for Yamana Gold ( AUY ) is still a "work in progress ," Reuters reports.

Gold Fields ( GFI ) shares plunged 25% in the first few days after news of the proposed takeover in May, and last month the company promised higher dividends and a Toronto Stock Exchange listing to sweeten its takeover offer.

The CEO said the market has started to understand the strategy and the timing of the deal, but investors remain unhappy with the premium the company offered to pay.

When asked if investors and shareholders are on board with the deal, Griffith said "we are trying to get them to see the massive upside that exists in this deal. So work in progress is probably the best way to describe it."

"The deal structure has been locked in. We don't foresee that we will change the deal structure," the CEO said, "but I do say that never say never."

In May, Gold Fields ( GFI ) announced its all-stock deal to buy Yamana, valuing the Canadian company at $6.7B .

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