TIDMPNG
RNS Number : 6758A
Persian Gold PLC
04 February 2011
4 February 2011
Persian Gold plc ("Persian Gold" or the "Company")
Restoration of trading on AIM
Proposed acquisition of Hydrocarbon Exploration plc (the
"Acquisition")
Proposed placing of 41,688,171 new ordinary shares at 6p per
share (the "Placing")
Subscription for 3,775,500 new ordinary shares at 6p per share
(the "Subscription")
Proposed change of name to Clontarf Energy plc
Application for Re-admission of the Enlarged Group to AIM
("Re-Admission")
Notice of General Meeting
-- Following the completion of documentation and the subsequent
raising of finance the Persian Gold suspension on AIM has been
lifted
-- A fundraising of GBP2.7m at 6p a share has been finalised
-- Following court and shareholder approvals, Persian Gold will
acquire Hydrocarbon Exploration plc ("HyEx") for GBP4.56m in an
all-share deal on the basis of 2,800 new Persian Gold ordinary
shares for every one HyEx share. This is expected to be completed
in early April
-- The Company proposes to change its name to 'Clontarf Energy'.
The enlarged group is expected to have a market cap of
approximately GBP12m
-- Since the Acquisition was announced, HyEx has won two
exploration blocks in Peru and there has been a significant gas
discovery on HyEx ground in El Dorado, Bolivia
-- Clontarf Energy will be an oil and gas focused venture with
operations in Bolivia, Peru and Ghana
-- The existing gold / copper activities in Iran are also being
retained
-- Shore Capital appointed as Nomad and Joint Broker to the
Company; Optiva Securities to act as Joint Broker to the
Company
John Teeling, Chairman, commented:
"Patience is a virtue, which I hope will be rewarded. The new
Persian Gold, when it is renamed Clontarf Energy, will be an
aggressive oil and gas explorer in some of the most attractive
energy areas in the world. The revitalised company will have 60% of
the Tano 2A block in Ghana, close to the massive Tullow / Kosmos
discoveries. HyEx has recently been awarded two exploration blocks
in Peru, 183 and 188, both of which are close to producers. Each
block has a history of exploration. In Bolivia, there has been a
further discovery on what will be our 10% owned El Dorado gas
discovery. Production has already begun from existing wells on the
licence.
We are not ignoring the other activities in the portfolio. We
continue to monitor and press our case for discovery certificates
in Iran; while in the US negotiations are ongoing to resolve the
dispute of certain assets. Neither of these are material to the
future.
Completing legal, financial and technical due diligence in three
continents, combined with holiday periods extended the time to
completion, but we are there now. A weighty prospectus will be
dispatched to all shareholders and following shareholder and court
approvals, the deal will be finalised.
Delay is always frustrating, but the new Peruvian blocks and
Bolivian gas discoveries are excellent compensation."
Enquiries:
Persian Gold plc
John Teeling, Chairman
David Horgan, Managing
Director
James Finn, Finance Director +353 (0) 1 833 2833
Nominated Adviser and
Joint Broker
Shore Capital
Pascal Keane
Toby Gibbs +44 (0)20 7408 4090
Joint Broker
Optiva Securities Limited
Jeremy King +44(0)20 3137 1904
College Hill
Nick Elwes +44 (0)20 7457 2020
Further information in relation to the proposals
On 22 June 2010, the Company announced that it had entered into
an implementation agreement with Hydrocarbon Exploration plc
("HyEx") whereby it agreed to acquire all of the shares in HyEx not
owned by the Company (the "Implementation Agreement"). The
Implementation Agreement was subsequently amended on 3 February
2011 whereby the number of consideration shares to be issued for
each HyEx share was increased from 2,500 consideration shares to
2,800 consideration shares ("Consideration Shares"). The
Acquisition, to be achieved by way of a scheme of arrangement
proposed by HyEx to its shareholders (the "Scheme"), will involve
the issue of 67,513,600 Consideration Shares by the Company to HyEx
shareholders (excluding the Company), giving a value for the
transaction of approximately GBP4.56 million (based on the
Company's share price of 6.75p immediately prior to the
announcement of the Acquisition).
HyEx, a UK-incorporated company, was formed to acquire certain
exploration and production assets from Pan Andean Resources plc.
HyEx has a portfolio of assets including oil production interests
in the US, oil and gas production interests in Bolivia, an oil
exploration interest in Ghana and oil and gas exploration interests
in Peru.
The rationale for the Acquisition is that the Persian Gold Board
believes that the development prospects for the Company's Iranian
assets (which have been the main focus of the Group's activities
heretofore) are likely to continue to be constrained by licensing
and administrative issues and that the Acquisition represents an
opportunity to acquire a diversified portfolio of exploration and
production assets which have the potential to generate value for
shareholders in the future.
The Company also announced today that it has conditionally
placed 41,688 171 shares at a price of 6p per share with investors
to raise GBP2.1 million before expenses (the placing commitments of
the Directors in the amount of GBP420,750 are being offset against
salaries accrued by those Directors and loans made to the Company
in 2010). The Placing, which is not being underwritten, has been
arranged by Shore Capital Stockbrokers Limited and Optiva
Securities Limitedand is conditional upon completion of the
Acquisition and Re-admission. In addition, the Company has received
subscriptions for 3,775,500 shares to raise approximately
GBP225k.
The Acquisition constitutes a 'reverse takeover' under the AIM
Rules and is therefore conditional, inter alia, upon the approval
of shareholders at the General Meeting. A circular comprising an
AIM Admission Document in relation to the Company (as enlarged by
HyEx) (the "Admission Document") and containing notice of a General
Meeting to approve, inter alia, the Acquisition has today been sent
to shareholders. John Teeling, James Finn and David Horgan are
directors and shareholders of both the Company and HyEx. Jack
Teeling, a Director of the Company, is also a HyEx shareholder. As
such, the Acquisition is a 'related party transaction' pursuant to
Rule 13 of the AIM Rules. Manouchehr Takin, being the Independent
Director for the purposes of the acquisition resolution , having
consulted with Shore Capital & Corporate Limited (the Company's
nominated adviser), considers that the terms of the Acquisition are
fair and reasonable insofar as shareholders are concerned.
Application will be made to have the enlarged issued share capital
of Persian Gold re-admitted to AIM following completion of the
Acquisition in accordance with its terms.
Information on HyEx
HyEx was incorporated in February 2010 to acquire certain assets
from Pan Andean Resources plc prior to its acquisition by
Petrominerales Ltd for approximately US$31 million. HyEx has
interests in four countries: Ghana, Peru, Bolivia and the US.
Ghana
HyEx has (through its 30 per cent. shareholding in Pan Andean
Resources Limited ("PARL") a 30 per cent. interest in the Tano 2A
Block. Persian Gold also has a 30% interest in this block.
In December 2008, PARL entered into the Tano Agreement in
respect of the Tano 2A Block oil exploration concession in respect
of onshore and shallow near-shore Ghana ("Tano 2A Block"). This
agreement, which was renegotiated on 27 January 2010, remains
subject to ratification by the Ghanaian parliament. HyEx has a 30
per cent. shareholding in PARL. The Tano 2A Block consists of
1,532km2 of onshore and shallow near-shore acreage close to the
recent discoveries in the deeper Tano basin by a consortium
including Tullow Oil plc, Kosmos Energy LLC. and Ghanaian National
Petroleum Company ("GNPC"). The other shareholders of PARL are the
Company (30 per cent.), Petrel Resources plc (30 per cent.) and
Ghanaian holders (10 per cent.).
Extensive data regarding the Tano 2A Block has been purchased by
PARL from GNPC including 42 geological reports and 676km of 2D
seismic data. PARL has identified a significant number of Leads
from an initial review of the data. The initial interpretation of
the main seismic surveys acquired is now underway by PARL's
technical experts and contractors.
The Directors view Ghana as attractive for exploration and
development and view agreement terms as not yet reflecting recent
exploration success and large exploration potential compared with
other countries with more established hydrocarbon resources.
As stated above, the Tano Agreement was renegotiated on 27
January 2010 and remains subject to ratification by the Ghanaian
parliament. The revised agreement reduces the technology grant
payment to a one-off payment of US$500k, reduces the training grant
to an annual payment of US$250k and amended some other conditions
which PARL considered onerous. The Directors anticipate that
ratification will occur in Q1 2011. Following such ratification,
PARL intends to find a suitable partner to assist in the
development of the Tano 2A Block.
Peru
Peru is now seen as a target area by the international
exploration and production industry because of its pro-business
government, attractive fiscal terms, proven hydrocarbon systems yet
relatively limited exploration history. HyEx was awarded two
exploration blocks by the Peruvian authorities in the October 2010
Peruvian bid round, being Blocks 188 and 183. The signing ceremony
to formalise the award of these blocks is expected to occur in
early 2011.
Block 188, is close to the Camisea field which has an estimated
16 TCF of gas and over 400 million barrels of hydrocarbon liquids
(condensate and natural gasoline). The play-type (or
geologically-defined target) in this block is similar to the
Camisea field based on historic data that has recently been
reprocessed with modern equipment and techniques by the prior
operator. The HyEx Directors believe that Block 188 is also
prospective for medium-size shallower fields.
Block 183 lies in the Maranon Basin in central Peru (which has
been a source of oil production). The block is located beside
blocks with existing oil production. The Directors believe that any
discovery on this block could connect to existing gas-condensate
infrastructure including processing plants and pipelines.
The HyEx management team delivered (while at Pan Andean) four
exploration blocks and three farm-outs in Peru. Having invested
circa US$3 million (a significant proportion of which was later
recovered from farm-in partners), Pan Andean (after divesting
certain assets to HyEx) was sold for US$31 million in cash in 2010.
HyEx's intention is to repeat this success in Peru by adding value
to properties which it intends to farm out, joint venture or
sell.
Bolivia
In April 2010, HyEx acquired Petrolex S.A. ("Petrolex") from Pan
Andean. Petrolex has interests in (1) the El Dorado gas/condensate
producing field in Bolivia ("El Dorado Field") on which significant
exploration success was enjoyed in the second half of 2010, and (2)
the Monteagudo oil/gas producing field in Bolivia ("Monteagudo
Field"). Both of these projects are proven projects close to
existing export pipelines which provides an opportunity to be
connected to existing infrastructure in order to sell on the
international market. The El Dorado Field is located approximately
29km from the entrance to the massive Bolivia-Brazil export line at
Rio Grande and 6km away from the existing gas pipeline of
Transredes S.A. ("Transredes") which feeds gas into the
Bolivia-Brazil export line and into the gas export line to
Argentina. The Monteagudo Field has a gas pipeline, owned by the
Monteagudo consortium, which takes natural gas from the Monteagudo
Field to the Cerrillos facilities, owned by Transredes. From there,
the natural gas is transported to Chorety (approximately 59km in a
6-inch pipeline), which is on the main Transredes trunk gas
pipeline which takes natural gas to Argentina, or transports it to
Rio Grande, the entrance to the Bolivia-Brazil gas export
pipeline.
Petrolex holds a 10 per cent. stake in the El Dorado Field,
located 55km south of Santa Cruz and covering an area of 18,250
hectares. The remaining 90 per cent. stake is held by YPFB Chaco
S.A. ("Chaco"), formerly part of the BP group (as Chaco S.A.). In
2007, Chaco S.A. was nationalised by the Bolivian state oil
company, Yacimientos Petroliferos Fiscales Bolivianos ("YPFB"). The
wells in this field are currently producing approximately 14
MMscf/d of gas and 321 bcpd.
Petrolex has initiated a civil lawsuit against Chaco, for the
alleged non-fulfilment of the joint operating agreement in respect
of the El Dorado Field. An injunction or restraining order has been
made against Chaco and YPFB ordering that no unilateral
modifications may be made by either party to the contract while the
case is being heard.
Pending the fulfilment of the operations contract Petrolex
ceased payment of cash calls. As a result Chaco is claiming for
unpaid cash calls from Petrolex under the operations contract.
Negotiations are ongoing in respect of this dispute and the
Directors are reasonably confident of a satisfactory and negotiated
outcome. However, an unsatisfactory outcome to this dispute from
Petrolex's perspective could affect Petrolex's continued
participation in the field.
Petrolex holds a 30 per cent. interest in the Monteagudo Field
in Central Bolivia, approximately 240km from Santa Cruz. This
project is operated by Repsol (holding a 30 per cent. interest).
The remaining interests are held by Petrobas Bolivia S.A.
("Petrobras") (holding a 20 per cent. interest) and YPFB Andina
S.A. (holding a 20 per cent. interest). The Monteagudo Field
currently produces around 120 bopd. The Directors believe the
Monteagudo Field has gas exploration potential at depth in the
Devonian age rocks which have delivered multi-TCF gas discoveries
in nearby blocks operated by Total S.A., Petrobras and Repsol. This
has been identified by 3D seismic data and is similar to the nearby
multi-TCF discoveries. The Directors believe that such a deep gas
play could contain up to 3 TCF of gas.
Petrolex is also in dispute with Repsol in relation to the
administration of the Monteagudo Field. Arising from this dispute
and litigation instigated by Petrolex, Repsol discontinued demands
for cash calls from October 2008. As a result of non-payment of
cash calls, Petrolex's continued participation in the Monteagudo
Field could be affected. A potential settlement of this dispute is
currently under consideration.
Further detail in relation to the disputes on Petrolex's
Bolivian interests is set out in the Admission Document. As a
result of the legal disputes Petrolex is currently receiving no
income from its holdings in Bolivia.
The US
HyEx has interests in five oil fields in the US held through the
company's subsidiary Endeavour Oil & Gas Inc. ("Endeavour"). Of
the five fields, three are offshore in the Gulf of Mexico and two
are onshore in Texas; four fields are currently in production.
Endeavour's main interest is through two producing assets in the
Gulf of Mexico: High Island 52 and High Island 30L. Endeavour
receives approximately US$35k monthly income from its royalty
interests in High Island 52.
Endeavour also has a 67.87 per cent. working interest in High
Island 30L which is currently producing up to 35 bopd, however, due
to a dispute between Endeavour and the operator of High Island 30L
Field, Hunt Oil Company, no income is being received from
Endeavour's interest. Further details of this dispute are set out
in the Admission Document.
Endeavour also receives royalties from one of its onshore
holdings. Oil production from all of these interests is declining
and the Directors expect that revenue associated with the US assets
will be immaterial by 2013.
Reasons for the Acquisition
The rationale for the Acquisition is that the Board believes
that the development prospects for the Company's Iranian assets
(which have been the main focus of the Group's activities
heretofore) may continue to be constrained by licensing and
administrative issues and that the Acquisition represents an
opportunity to acquire a diversified portfolio of exploration and
production assets which have the potential to generate value for
Shareholders in the future.
The Acquisition
The Company has agreed to acquire all of the HyEx shares (save
for the HyEx shares already owned by the Company) to be achieved by
way of the Scheme. The Company will issue 2,800 Consideration
Shares for every one HyEx share (save for the HyEx shares already
owned by the Company). This will result in the issue of 67,513,600
Consideration Shares giving an effective total consideration for
the transaction of approximately GBP4.56 million (based on the
Company's share price of 6.75p immediately prior to the
announcement of the Acquisition).
The terms of the Acquisition are set out in the Implementation
Agreement further details of which are set out in the Admission
Document. The Implementation Agreement was subsequently amended on
3 February 2011, whereby the number of Consideration Shares to be
issued for each HyEx share was increased from 2,500 Consideration
Shares to 2,800 Consideration Shares. The Acquisition is
conditional on, inter alia:
1. approval by Persian Gold shareholders;
2. approval by HyEx shareholders;
3. approval of the Scheme of Arrangement and related proposals
by the Court; and
4. Re-admission of the enlarged issued share capital to AIM.
John Teeling, James Finn and David Horgan are directors of both
the Company and HyEx. The following Directors are interested in the
HyEx shares as follows:
John Teeling - 1,818 HyEx shares (equivalent to 7.12% of the
issued share capital of HyEx)
James Finn - 351 HyEx shares (equivalent to 1.37% of the issued
share capital of HyEx)
David Horgan - 713 HyEx shares (equivalent to 2.79% of the
issued share capital of HyEx)
Jack Teeling - 221 HyEx shares (equivalent to 0.87% of the
issued share capital of HyEx)
As a result, the Acquisition is a 'related party transaction'
pursuant to Rule 13 of the AIM Rules. Manouchehr Takin, being the
Independent Director for the purposes of the Acquisition
Resolution, having consulted with Shore Capital (the Company's
nominated adviser), considers that the terms of the Acquisition are
fair and reasonable insofar as Shareholders are concerned.
The Scheme requires, among other things, the approval of the
Scheme Shareholders at a HyEx Court Meeting and also the passing of
special resolutions at a General Meeting of HyEx shareholders to be
held immediately after the HyEx Court Meeting. It also requires the
sanction of the High Court. It is expected that the Scheme will
become effective and Re-admission to AIM will take place of
ordinary shares in the Enlarged Group on 6 April 2011.
Nominated Adviser and Joint Broker
Shore Capital & Corporate Limited was appointed as nominated
adviser to the Company and Shore Capital Stockbrokers Limited was
appointed as joint broker to the Company today. Optiva Securities
Limited will also act as joint broker to the Company.
The Placing
Shore Capital Stockbrokers Limited and Optiva Securities Limited
have conditionally agreed to use their respective reasonable
endeavours to place, as agent for the Company, a total of
41,688,171 Placing Shares at 6p with institutional investors, which
will represent approximately 17.6 per cent. of the Enlarged Issued
Share Capital of the Company following Re-admission. It is
anticipated that the Placing, which is not being underwritten or
guaranteed, will raise GBP2.1 million before expenses.
The Placing Shares will be issued paid up and, following
allotment, will rank in full for all dividends or other
distributions hereafter declared made or paid on the ordinary share
capital of the Company and will rank pari passu in all other
respects with all other Ordinary Shares in issue on Re-admission.
Application will be made for the Enlarged Issued Share Capital to
be admitted to trading on AIM. It is expected that trading in the
Enlarged Issued Share Capital will commence on 6 April 2011.
The Placing is conditional, inter alia, upon:
(a) the passing of the Resolutions;
(b) the passing of the HyEx Court Resolution;
(c) the passing of the HyEx Resolutions;
(d) the Acquisition becoming wholly unconditional save for
Admission; and
(e) Admission having become effective on or before 8.30 a.m. on
5 April 2011 (or such later date as the Company and SCC may agree,
not being later than 5.00 p.m. on 5 May 2011).
The Directors are subscribing for 7,012,500 Placing Shares in
the Placing. The aggregate amount of GBP420,750 due by the
Directors to the Company for these Placing Shares will be offset
against Directors' fees which have been accrued in 2010 and loans
made by the Directors to the Company in August 2010.
Subscription for the Subscription Shares
The Company has received subscriptions for 3,775,500
Subscription Shares at 6p per Subscription Share conditional on
completion of the Acquisition and on Admission for an aggregate
subscription amount of GBP224,270.04. It is intended that 3,775,500
Subscription Shares will be allotted to the subscribers immediately
prior to Admission.
Use of Proceeds
The gross proceeds of the Placing and the Subscription are
expected to be GBP2.3 million and the net cash proceeds to the
Company of the Placing and the Subscription (after deduction of
expenses estimated in total at approximately GBP0.55 million
(excluding VAT) and assuming full subscription) are expected to be
GBP1.7 million.
The Directors intend that the net funds raised through the
Placing and the Subscription will be used as follows:
-- Ghana: interpretation of the main seismic surveys acquired by
the Company on the Tano 2A Block together with local training costs
(GBP0.4 million);
-- Bolivia: settlement of dispute in respect of the El Dorado
Field and in-country administration expenses (GBP0.5 million);
-- Peru: payment of bonds on exploration licences on Blocks 188
and 183, initial data review and in-country administration expenses
(GBP0.2 million); and
-- head office costs and general working capital (GBP0.6
million).
Current trading and prospects
On 17 September 2010 Persian Gold announced its interim results
for the six months ended 30 June 2010, The unaudited loss before
tax for that period was GBP143,000 compared to a loss before tax of
GBP161,000 for the equivalent period in 2009. On 30 June 2010
Persian Gold had unaudited net assets of GBP1,419,000.
The Company continues its efforts to secure exploration permits
for its projects in Iran. In relation to the oil exploration
concession in Ghana the Directors believe that the formal
ratification of the agreement will occur in Q1 2011. The Company
then intends to find a suitable partner to assist in the
development of the concession. As stated above, HyEx was awarded
two exploration blocks by the Peruvian authorities in the October
2010 Peruvian bid round, being Blocks 188 and 183. The signing
ceremony to formalise the award of these blocks is expected to
occur in early 2011.
Following Re-admission, the Enlarged Group will be a diversified
group with resources exploration and production activities in
Ghana, Peru, Bolivia, the US and Iran.
Future Strategy of the Enlarged Group
The Directors' intended strategy for the Enlarged Group is:
-- to capitalise on management experience in successfully
acquiring high potential hydrocarbon;
exploration acreage and thereafter adding value by obtaining the
necessary permits to explore and drill with value being added
through farm-out arrangements on such assets to larger companies at
a premium;
-- to develop the Tano 2A Block in Ghana in accordance with the
revised terms of the Tano Agreement negotiated on 27 January
2010;
-- to acquire exploration licences in Peru. It is expected that
in early 2011 these licences will be formally signed on the two
blocks awarded to HyEx in October 2010. Initial work on past data
is already underway on Blocks 188 and 183. The Directors believe
that the work is likely to attract interest from larger potential
partners;
-- to conclude negotiations with Chaco to resolve outstanding
issues in respect of HyEx's participation in the El Dorado
Field;
-- to facilitate the acquisition of Repsol's operating 30 per
cent. of the Monteagudo Field with a view to drilling by a new
external partner the 3D identified gas target at depths greater
than 4,000 metres; and
-- to bid for marginal projects in countries where the Company
has expertise, providing the technical and economic conditions are
appropriate.
General Meeting
Shareholders have today been sent a notice convening a general
meeting of the Company to be held at The City of London Club, 19
Old Broad Street, London EC2N 1DS at 11.30 a.m. on 15 March 2011 at
which the following resolutions will be proposed:
Resolution 1 is an ordinary resolution to approve the
Acquisition, conditional on the passing of the HyEx Resolutions and
the HyEx Court Resolution;
Resolution 2 is an ordinary resolution to give the Directors the
requisite share capital authorities for the purpose of allotting
Ordinary Shares in connection with the Acquisition, the Placing and
the Subscription, and also generally to authorise an allotment of
Ordinary Shares of up to an aggregate nominal value GBP250,000
until the first anniversary of the Resolution;
Resolution 3 is a special resolution to give the Directors the
power to disapply statutory pre-emption rights to allot Ordinary
Shares in connection with the Acquisition, the Placing and the
Subscription and for the purpose of allotting Ordinary Shares of up
to an aggregate nominal value GBP250,000 until the first
anniversary of the Resolution;
Resolution 4 is a special resolution to adopt the New Articles;
and
Conditional on the passing of Resolution 1, Resolution 5 is a
special resolution to change the name of the Company to Clontarf
Energy plc.
Irrevocable Undertakings
John Teeling, David Horgan and James Finn have irrevocably
undertaken to HyEx and Persian Gold to vote in favour of the HyEx
Resolutions in respect of all of their beneficial holdings of 2,882
HyEx Shares, representing in aggregate approximately 11.28 per
cent. of the anticipated issued share capital of HyEx entitled to
vote at the HyEx GM at the Voting Record Time.
The company has irrevocably undertaken to HyEx to vote in favour
of the HyEx Resolutions in respect of its beneficial holding of
1,425 HyEx Shares representing approximately 5.58 per cent. of the
anticipated issued share capital of HyEx entitled to vote at the
HyEx GM at the Voting Record Time.
Mauricio Gonzalez has irrevocably undertaken to Persian Gold to
vote in favour of the HyEx Court Resolution and the HyEx
Resolutions in respect of all of his beneficial holdings of 80 HyEx
Shares representing approximately 0.31 per cent. of the anticipated
share capital of HyEx at the Voting Record Time entitled to vote at
the HyEx Court Meeting.
Jack Teeling has irrevocably undertaken to HyEx to vote in
favour of the HyEx Resolutions in respect of his beneficial holding
of 221 HyEx Shares representing approximately 0.87 per cent. of the
anticipated issued share capital of HyEx entitled to vote at the
HyEx GM at the Voting Record Time.
John Teeling, David Horgan and James Finn will abstain from
voting at the HyEx Court Meeting as they are directors and
shareholders in the Company. The Company will not be entitled to
vote at the HyEx Court Meeting as the shares which it holds in HyEx
do not form part of the Scheme.
These undertakings shall lapse and be of no further effect and
no party thereto shall have any claim against the other except in
relation to any breach of any provision of such undertaking prior
to the relevant date or time if:
1. the HyEx Directors recommend a superior acquisition proposal
in accordance with the terms of the Implementation Agreement;
or
2. either the Company or HyEx pays the non completion fees,
when, and if due under the Implementation Agreement and the
Implementation Agreement is terminated in accordance with its
terms.
Enquiries:
Persian Gold plc
John Teeling, Chairman +353 (0) 1 833 2833
James Finn, Finance Director +353 (0) 1 833 2833
Nominated Adviser and
Joint Broker
Shore Capital
Pascal Keane
Toby Gibbs +44 (0)20 7408 4090
Joint Broker
Optiva Securities Limited
Jeremy King +44(0)20 3137 1904
College Hill
Nick Elwes +44 (0)20 7457 2020
www.persiangoldplc.com
Note to Editors:
Information on Persian Gold
Persian Gold was incorporated in 2003 as a gold exploration
company focused on identifying gold mineralisation in Iran (in
particular, 'Yanacocha-type' high sulphidator epithermal
mineralisation). The Company was listed on AIM in 2005 since when
assets have been added such that the Group now has interests in
three countries: Ghana, Iran and Bolivia.
Ghana
As stated above, the Company has a 30% interest in the Tano 2A
Block (further details of which are set out above).
Iran
The Company's strategy in Iran has been to seek significant
porphyry copper-gold and volcanic hosted gold deposits similar to
those found in the Andes of South America in the past 10 years.
Persian Gold, through its interest in its local Subsidiaries,
conducted significant exploration work, including drilling, as well
as desktop research based on existing data, on two projects:
(i) Chah-e-Zard, a gold/silver discovery near Yazd in
south-central Iran ("Chah-e-Zard Project"); and
(ii) Dalli, a copper/gold porphyry in north-central Iran, south
west of Tehran ("Dalli Project").
Chah-e-Zard project
Chah-e-Zard is located approximately 550km southeast of Tehran
in the province of Yazd. The project, which covers an area of 39.5
km2, is on the general Tethyan volcanic belt, which is prospective
for copper and gold, and stretches from Armenia/Turkey over Iran to
Pakistan. The largest undeveloped copper/gold deposit in the world,
Reko Diq, which is across the Iranian border in Pakistan, is also
on this belt.
The Company entered into an option agreement in June 2007 with
Hamid Deihimi whereby it earned a 70 per cent. interest in Talaye
Pars Yazd, an Iranian-incorporated company. As a result of 4,135m
of drilling and 3 380m of trenching a 'reserve' has been calculated
by Persian Gold in accordance with the "Islamic Republic of Iran -
Instructions for Mineral Reserves Classification - No. 379" for
Chahe- Zard quoting a Proven figure of 2.2Mt at 1.7g/t Au and
12.7g/t Ag and a further Probable amount of 6.2Mt at 0.77g/t Au and
10.8g/t Ag. Wardell Armstong International have reviewed this work.
These estimates have not been prepared according to an
internationally recognised reporting standard such as the JORC Code
(2004); hence they are included for information only. A discovery
certificate for the Chah-e-Zard Project was applied for in
September 2008 but has not yet been issued. It is expected that if
the discovery certificate for this project is granted, the licence
in respect of this project will be transferred to Talaye Pars Yazd
and, subject to funding and further work such as a feasability
study, an open pit and heap leach mine to extract the mineral
deposits will be developed.
Dalli Project
The Dalli Project licence area covers 9km2 and is located 200km
southwest of Tehran. It is located on the central volcanic belt,
the UDMA (Urimieh Dokhtar Magmatic AVC), which hosts other major
porphyry systems. It is a copper and gold deposit that was
discovered by Rio Tinto in 2002. Persian Gold's joint venture
partner Dorsa Pardazeh Company ("Dorsa") undertook field work on
the project and entered into an agreement in August 2007 with
Persian Gold's Subsidiary, Persian Gold Limited in relation to the
Dalli Project. Dorsa granted an option to Persian Gold Limited to
acquire 70 per cent. of the shares in an Iranian incorporated joint
venture company to which the licence in respect of the Dalli
Project is to be transferred.
The Dalli project is an advanced exploration project, with
demonstrated mineralisation which, the Directors believe, should be
economic at current prices, costs and taxes. Two phases of drilling
have been completed with, what the Directors believe, are generally
encouraging results. A preliminary Proven reserve of 5.6Mt at 0.377
per cent. Cu and 0.5g/t Au and a further Probable reserve of 7.8Mt
at 0.3 per cent. Cu has been calculated by Persian Gold in
accordance with the "Islamic Republic of Iran - Instructions for
Mineral Reserves Classification - No. 379". Wardell Armstong
International have reviewed this work. These estimates have not
been prepared according to an internationally recognised reporting
standard such as the JORC Code (2004); hence they are included for
information only. The Company's proposal, subject to funding and
further work such as a feasability study, is to develop a small
open pit heap leach operation.
A discovery certificate for the Dalli Project has been applied
for but has not yet been granted. Pending the grant of the
discovery certificate in respect of this project, the Board does
not intend to invest any further substantial funds in the Dalli
Project. It is expected that if the discovery certificate for this
project is granted the licence in respect of this project will be
transferred to the joint venture vehicle.
Bolivia
In May 2010, Persian Gold entered into a memorandum of
understanding ("MoU") with Quimbabol, a company owned by the
Bolivian armed forces ("Quimbabol"), the state of Potosi and local
communities (residing in the area) to study certain evaporates
deposits in salt-lakes in Bolivia over which Quimbabol has
concessions. The scope of study includes a variety of potentially
economic minerals, including lithium. Bolivia accounts for
approximately 50 per cent. of the world's lithium reserves. Persian
Gold has identified 5 salt lakes feasible for exploration and
production of carbonates and sulphates containing commercial
lithium (in particular, the Lake Uyuni and Coipasa salt pans in the
Andes).
Under the MoU, Persian Gold has agreed to prepare a scoping
study on industrial projects associated with the salt-lakes, namely
a soda ash plant and borax derived deposits. This project is
currently at a very early stage and the Directors expect that it
will involve relatively low costs and commitments in 2011. The next
steps intended for this project are laboratory tests on samples
already taken to determine the chemical and physical properties of
the constituent minerals with a view to then marketing to key
customers.
Ends
This information is provided by RNS
The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
END
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Persian Gold (LSE:PNG)
過去 株価チャート
から 12 2024 まで 1 2025
Persian Gold (LSE:PNG)
過去 株価チャート
から 1 2024 まで 1 2025
