Adolf Henrick Lundin

Obituary

Adolf Henrick Lundin, the billionaire who founded and built namesake companies Lundin Mining and Lundin Oil, has died of leukemia. He was 73.

Lundin was born in 1932 in Sweden. He earned a master of science in engineering in 1956 from the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm. He soon joined oil company Royal Dutch Shell Group in the Netherlands, but later returned to school to earn an MBA in 1961. Sweden’s Axel Johnson Group was next on his resume and it was there that he found a flair for swinging business deals.

Lundin struck out on his own in 1971 and, after dabbling in some small companies and merging others, his first big success came as head of Gulfstream Resources Canada when the company discovered one of the world’s largest gas fields off the coast of Qatar in 1976.

During a lengthy career, Lundin struck oil in Sudan, Libya, and Malaysia.

In the 1980s, Lundin put his oil and gas explorers into one basket to form Consolidated International Petroleum, which ultimately became Lundin Oil. In 2001, Lundin sold Lundin Oil to Talisman Energy in a deal worth US$529 million.

Black gold wasn’t his only success; Lundin was also drawn by the allure of the yellow metal.

With International Musto Explorations, Lundin developed the Bajo de la Alumbrera gold project in Argentina. In 1994, Musto sold half of Alumbrera to M.I.M. Holdings for US$130 million. The following year, Lundin sold the other half to Rio Algom and North Ltd., for about US$510 million.

Meanwhile, another Lundin company, Argentina Gold, was developing the Veladero gold-silver property in Argentina. Homestake Mining came calling in 1999 and paid roughly $7.80 for each share of Argentina Gold, or roughly US$300 million. The company had traded at 45 six years earlier.

Today, Lundin Mining will likely merge with EuroZinc Mining, and another Lundin-led company, International Uranium, is slated to become part of Denison Mines.

Lundin is survived by his wife, Eva, sons Lukas and Ian, and daughters Mona and Nicola.