(Adds details, background, legal advisers)
March 27 (Reuters) - Canadian diamond miner Dominion Diamond Corp DDC.TO DDC.N , which is being pursued by Washington Cos and Stornoway Diamond Corp SWY.TO , said it would explore strategic alternatives, including a sale.
U.S.-listed shares of Dominion, which has a market cap of C$1.41 billion ($1.06 billion), were up 7.3 percent at $13.70 in premarket trading on Monday.
Dominion's largest shareholder, M&G Investments, last week asked the company to run a formal sales process and open its books to interested parties. Cos, a group of privately held North American mining, industrial and transportation businesses founded by billionaire Dennis Washington, revealed its $1.1 billion unsolicited bid in March. the world's third-largest diamond producer by value, broke off talks with the Washington Cos, calling the terms as unusual and unacceptable. the miner said later that it was open to holding discussions with the Washington Cos.
Fellow Canadian diamond miner Stornoway Diamond Corp SWY.TO last week entered into talks with Dominion about a potential merger. owns the Ekati diamond mine in Canada's Northwest Territories and a 40 percent stake in the nearby Diavik mine.
TD Securities Inc is Dominion's financial adviser, while Stikeman Elliott LLP is the legal adviser. Advisors is the strategic adviser.
Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP is acting as legal adviser to the company's special committee and the board of directors.
($1 = 1.33 Canadian dollars)