Energy Metals Ltd., an Australian uranium explorer, has received an A$83.6 million ($72.1 million) takeover offer from a unit of state-controlled China Guangdong Nuclear Power Holding Co.

China Uranium Development Co. offered A$1.02 in cash for 70 percent of Energy Metals’s shares, and the Australian company’s board recommended that the deal be accepted, according to a statement released by the Sydney stock exchange today. The offer represents a 19 percent premium to Energy Metals’s closing price on Aug. 26, the statement said.

"The Energy Metals board believes that China Guangdong Nuclear Power Holding Co.'s financial resources, technical expertise and strategic intent to develop its uranium portfolio will greatly assist Energy Metals in its transition from explorer to developer and producer," Chairman Oscar Aarmodt said in the statement.

The proposed takeover has to be agreed by Australian and Chinese regulators and comes amid strained relations between the two nations over the arrest of the Rio Tinto Group employee Stern Hu for allegedly stealing trade secrets and a spate of Chinese acquisitions in Australia to take advantage of lower commodity prices.

China Railway Materials Commercial Corp. agreed this week to pay A$39.8 million to buy stakes in two Australian iron ore explorers to secure supplies.

Exxon Mobil Corp. agreed last month in a $41 billion deal to sell liquefied natural gas to PetroChina Co. from the Gorgon project in Australia.