VANCOUVER - First Quantum Minerals Ltd. (TSX:FM) said Friday that it has received regulatory approval under the Investment Canada Act for its $5.1-billion hostile takeover offer for Inmet Mining Corp. (TSX:IMN).

Inmet has rejected the offer and recommended shareholders reject the bid, but has waived the application of a shareholder rights plan after a review of strategic alternatives.

The First Quantum stock-and-cash proposal, which is valued at $72 per share, is open until Monday.

Inmet has mining operations in Turkey, Spain and Finland, along with an 80 per cent interest in Cobre Panama, a development property in Panama currently in construction.