Miner Hochschild to list rare earth unit Aclara in Toronto

(Reuters) -London-listed Hochschild Mining said on Tuesday it would pursue a listing of its Chilean rare earth unit Aclara Resources in Toronto, as it taps new funding to step up focus on its mainstay precious metals business.

Hochschild, which operates mines in South America, will demerge 80% of Aclara's shares as part of the deal while keeping the remaining stake in the company it acquired in 2019.

"Each (Hochschild and Aclara) will have their own strategic focus on their respective products, their own dedicated management teams, separated access to capital and an independent valuation," Hochschild Chairman Eduardo Hochschild said in a statement.

Following the demerger, Ramon Barua will step down as chief financial officer at Hochschild to take over as the chief executive of Aclara.

Shares in Hochschild jumped 4.7% to 149.5 pence by 0730 GMT and were the top gainer on London's FTSE 250 mid-cap index.

(Reporting by Amna Karimi in Bengaluru; editing by Uttaresh.V)