Ex-Rio Tinto Boss to List Seabed Mining Firm in $1 Billion Deal

American Ocean Minerals Corp., a deep-sea exploration company led by former Rio Tinto Chief Executive Officer Tom Albanese, is combining with Odyssey Marine Exploration Inc. in a reverse merger.

The all-stock deal values the combined company at about $1 billion on a pro forma equity basis, the companies said in a statement Wednesday morning. The announcement confirms an earlier report from Bloomberg News.