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Released November 01, 2012 | MANILA, PHILIPPINES
en
Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--A bankable feasibility study will begin within weeks on one of the Philippines' world-class gold-copper projects, the King King Mining Project. The Toronto Stock Exchange recently approved Queensberry Mining and Development Corporation's acquisition of 23.7% secondary shares of St. Augustine Gold and Copper Limited (TSX:SAU), through option agreements and a private placement, valued at CND$34 million (US$35 million).
Before the acquisition deal was sealed, there was the formation of a strategic partnership between St. Augustine Gold and Copper Limited and Queensberry Mining and Development Corporation, in a private transaction announced on October 11, 2012, and orchestrated by the Company's highest shareholder, Russell Mining and Minerals ULC.
The new arrangement grants Queensberry approximately 20% of the issued and outstanding common shares of the company, or 23.7% on a fully diluted basis, plus the right to acquire additional 4.65 million shares from the treasury through a private placement at US$0.75 per share prior to November 20, 2012.
Manuel Paolo A. Villar, Queensberry's president and chief executive officer (CEO), now has a chance to be nominated to a director's position on St. Augustine's board to replace Andrew J. Russell, who agreed to step down as a director while staying on as CEO.
"We greatly welcome the involvement of Queensberry in St. Augustine, and believe that it is a very positive development for the company," Russell said.
The mutual benefit of this acquisition and partnership placement is to help raise approximately US$4.7 million through an offering of 25 million units at a unit price of US$0.188, with each unit consisting of one common share and 0.3 of one common share purchase "warrant" of the company. However, each warrant entitles Queensberry to acquire one share at a price of US$0.256 for a period of one year from the closing of the private placement. The net proceeds will be used as general working capital in the King King Copper Gold project.
"By partnering with the Villar group, we are confident that it will assist St. Augustine in being able to move the King King project forward over the coming months and years for the benefit of all stakeholders in the project," Russell said.
The acquisition also solidified Villar's group entry into the Philippines mining industry.
"I am pleased and excited to have formed a strategic partnership with St. Augustine Gold and Copper, which is run by some of the industry leaders with a strong, proven track record in mining," Manuel Villar said.
Villar is expected to bring a tremendous amount of experience to the Philippine operations. He will serve as director, president and chief executive officer of Vista Land and Lifescapes Incorporated, and director of Starmall Incorporated, two very huge national corporations in the Philippines. He also was a consultant for McKinsey & Company, a global management consulting firm, and head of corporate planning for Crown Asia in the Philippines.
The King King project is a gold-rich copper-gold porphyry deposit in the southeast of the Philippine Island of Mindanao, which is 13 kilometers from the coast. The project is listed as one of the top priority projects by the Philippine Mines and Geosciences Bureau.
An October 2010 technical report and an updated resource report released on August 15, 2011, classifies the King King Project as one of the largest undeveloped copper-gold deposits in the world, with a low strip ratio and a total resource of 962 million tonnes. It includes US$41 billion of current in-ground metal value.
It has an advanced project status, with 276 drill holes and 89,922 meters of drilling completed and reported. Projected annual production is 611,000 ounces of gold and 207 million pounds of copper, covering an average of two to five years.
Industrial Info gathered that M3 Engineering & Technology Corporation also has completed economic evaluation (consultancy) on the entire King King project, which paves the way for the actual ongoing costing of the project for bankable feasibility documentation. Meanwhile, the project team is currently accepting quotation documents for preliminary bidding from interested companies vying for engineering procurement and construction contracts.
An official at the company said that three major areas of project execution considered in the current process include gold-copper mine development, power plant, and processing plant facility.
Construction of the King King project is expected to start by the second quarter of 2013, after the company is granted relevant environmental and indigenous people's permits, plus go-ahead orders from the Philippines Bureau of Mines.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, and eight offices outside of North America, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities.
Before the acquisition deal was sealed, there was the formation of a strategic partnership between St. Augustine Gold and Copper Limited and Queensberry Mining and Development Corporation, in a private transaction announced on October 11, 2012, and orchestrated by the Company's highest shareholder, Russell Mining and Minerals ULC.
The new arrangement grants Queensberry approximately 20% of the issued and outstanding common shares of the company, or 23.7% on a fully diluted basis, plus the right to acquire additional 4.65 million shares from the treasury through a private placement at US$0.75 per share prior to November 20, 2012.
Manuel Paolo A. Villar, Queensberry's president and chief executive officer (CEO), now has a chance to be nominated to a director's position on St. Augustine's board to replace Andrew J. Russell, who agreed to step down as a director while staying on as CEO.
"We greatly welcome the involvement of Queensberry in St. Augustine, and believe that it is a very positive development for the company," Russell said.
The mutual benefit of this acquisition and partnership placement is to help raise approximately US$4.7 million through an offering of 25 million units at a unit price of US$0.188, with each unit consisting of one common share and 0.3 of one common share purchase "warrant" of the company. However, each warrant entitles Queensberry to acquire one share at a price of US$0.256 for a period of one year from the closing of the private placement. The net proceeds will be used as general working capital in the King King Copper Gold project.
"By partnering with the Villar group, we are confident that it will assist St. Augustine in being able to move the King King project forward over the coming months and years for the benefit of all stakeholders in the project," Russell said.
The acquisition also solidified Villar's group entry into the Philippines mining industry.
"I am pleased and excited to have formed a strategic partnership with St. Augustine Gold and Copper, which is run by some of the industry leaders with a strong, proven track record in mining," Manuel Villar said.
Villar is expected to bring a tremendous amount of experience to the Philippine operations. He will serve as director, president and chief executive officer of Vista Land and Lifescapes Incorporated, and director of Starmall Incorporated, two very huge national corporations in the Philippines. He also was a consultant for McKinsey & Company, a global management consulting firm, and head of corporate planning for Crown Asia in the Philippines.
The King King project is a gold-rich copper-gold porphyry deposit in the southeast of the Philippine Island of Mindanao, which is 13 kilometers from the coast. The project is listed as one of the top priority projects by the Philippine Mines and Geosciences Bureau.
An October 2010 technical report and an updated resource report released on August 15, 2011, classifies the King King Project as one of the largest undeveloped copper-gold deposits in the world, with a low strip ratio and a total resource of 962 million tonnes. It includes US$41 billion of current in-ground metal value.
It has an advanced project status, with 276 drill holes and 89,922 meters of drilling completed and reported. Projected annual production is 611,000 ounces of gold and 207 million pounds of copper, covering an average of two to five years.
Industrial Info gathered that M3 Engineering & Technology Corporation also has completed economic evaluation (consultancy) on the entire King King project, which paves the way for the actual ongoing costing of the project for bankable feasibility documentation. Meanwhile, the project team is currently accepting quotation documents for preliminary bidding from interested companies vying for engineering procurement and construction contracts.
An official at the company said that three major areas of project execution considered in the current process include gold-copper mine development, power plant, and processing plant facility.
Construction of the King King project is expected to start by the second quarter of 2013, after the company is granted relevant environmental and indigenous people's permits, plus go-ahead orders from the Philippines Bureau of Mines.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, and eight offices outside of North America, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities.
