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Renewal of cautionary and update on proposed transaction
Jubilee Platinum Plc
AIM: JLP JSE: JBL
Registration number: 4459850
ISIN GB0031852162
("Jubilee" or the “Company")
UPDATE RELATING TO THE PROPOSED TRANSACTION BY JUBILEE
PLATINUM PLC (“JUBILEE”) WITH PLATINUM AUSTRALIA LTD (“PLA”)
AND RENEWAL OF CAUTIONARY ANNOUNCEMENT
INTRODUCTION:
Jubilee is pleased to announce that, further to the cautionary
announcement on 14 December 2012 regarding a proposed business
combination or merger (“the Proposed Transaction”) with
Platinum Australia Ltd by way of a proposed Scheme of
Arrangement (“Scheme”), the Parties have agreed to extend the
binding and exclusive terms of the Heads of Agreement to 28
January 2013 (“Extension Period”).
Under the Proposed Transaction, Jubilee will secure the terms of
a funding package to reinstate operations at the near surface
Phokothaba Mine, currently placed under care and maintenance by
Platinum Australia. Jubilee has secured indicative terms sheets
for the project financing structure from financial institutions and
will work towards concluding the funding structure within the
Extension Period.
Leon Coetzer, Chief Executive Officer of Jubilee, said: “We
are pleased with the progress made towards effecting the
Proposed Transaction with Platinum Australia. The targeted
enlarged group would include the combination of shallow and
at-surface mining and exploration assets together with a fully
operable shallow mining operation and smelters, underpinned by
the very large Tjate mining exploration asset.”
RENEWAL OF CAUTIONARY
As the Proposed Transaction is still in negotiation stages,
shareholders are advised to continue to exercise caution when
dealing in their securities until a further detailed
announcement is made.
Contacts
Jubilee Platinum plc
Colin Bird/Leon Coetzer
Tel +44 (0) 20 7584 2155 / Tel +27 (0)11 465 1913
Andrew Sarosi
Tel +44 (0) 1752 221937
finnCap Ltd
Matthew Robinson/Ben Thompson – corporate finance
Joanna Weaving – corporate broking
Tel +44 (0) 20 7220 0500
Shore Capital Stockbrokers Limited (Joint Broker)
Jerry Keen/Edward Mansfield
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7 408 4090
Sasfin Capital
Leonard Eiser/Sharon Owens
Tel +27 (0) 11 809 7500
Bishopsgate Communications Ltd
Nick Rome/Anna Michniewicz/Ivana Petkova
Tel +44 (0) 20 7562 3350
Jubilee Platinum plc is a mining exploration and development
company with a primary focus on platinum group elements (PGE).
Through recent acquisitions, the Company has added PGE and
ferroalloy smelting and refining to its capability. The
Company aims to create an integrated mine-to-metals company
with a primary focus on platinum. This mission is based on
modern and thoroughly-proven smelting technology to process
the Company’s own and other’s high-chrome PGE concentrates
and, importantly, to improve mining environments by
reprocessing mine tailings dumped by other miners.
The Company’s prime asset in South Africa is the Tjate
platinum project, in which it has a 63% beneficial interest.
The project’s exploration area is judged to host the world’s
largest undeveloped block of defined platinum ore, covering
some 5,140 hectares to a potential target of some 65 million
oz (41 million oz attributable) of PGEs and gold, net of
geological losses. Tjate Platinum Corporation, received a
formal offer from a major mining company to acquire for ZAR75
million (c.£5.95 million at current exchange rates) in cash,
for the Quartzhill farm portion of its Tjate Platinum
Project.
In October 2009, Jubilee acquired Braemore Resources plc,
which holds an exclusive licence to the ConRoast process for
the smelting of high chrome-bearing PGE concentrates and has
acquired extensive process development expertise. Jubilee’s
first goal is to complete the establishment of commercial
ConRoast operations to recover platinum group metals from
difficult-to-treat concentrates, residues and tailings. The
ConRoast plant is being established at the recently acquired
and strategically located ferroalloy smelting facility in
Middelburg.
Jubilee’s 70%-owned Power Alt (Pty) Ltd, that owns the on-site
11MW gas-fired electricity generation plant in Middelburg, has
been awarded a tender to supply 5.1MW of power to the national
electricity utility company worth an estimated ZAR12.4 million
(GBP970 000 at current exchange rates) in sales, for an
initial trial period of four months. The 5.1MW is surplus to
current requirements of the Company's Middelburg smelter and
more may become available following the review of continued
use of older furnaces.
Jubilee’s subsidiary company Pollux Investment Holdings (Pty)
Ltd (to be renamed Jubilee Tailings Treatment Company (Pty)
Ltd) has entered into an agreement with Phokathaba Platinum
(Pty) Ltd, a South African subsidiary platinum mining company
of Australian Stock Exchange listed Platinum Australia Ltd to
toll process the 800,000 tonnes of Dilokong Chrome Mine
platinum-bearing tailings using Phokathaba’s concentrator on
PlatAus’s Smokey Hills mine in the Eastern Bushveld. On 13
June 2012 Jubilee was awarded the right to recover the
platinum group metals contained in the Dilokong Tailings.
In Australia, Jubilee is evaluating the recovery of nickel
from the tailings of the Leinster mine in Western Australia.
The Company has rights through a tailings supply agreement
with BHP-Billiton to test and, if appropriate, to process the
nickel tailings from BHPB’s Leinster mine and conditionally
thereafter, from its Kambalda and Mount Keith operations.
Jubilee is dedicated to sustainable and socially responsible
development and, as a company, ensures its projects adhere to
the highest environmental standards. The Company is also a
firm proponent for the role of foreign direct investment as a
key form of social development in developing African
countries.
Platinum Australia (ASX Code: PLA) owns 70% of the Smokey
Hills Platinum Mine which is a shallow underground operation
capable of producing up to 80,000oz 4E PGM per annum. Due to
prevailing low metal prices the mine was placed on care and
maintenance in June 2012. It is currently planned to commence
treating chrome tailings through the Smokey Hills processing
plant in early 2013 and dependent on metal prices, to restart
underground mining operations during the second half of 2013.
The mine would be expected to ramp up to a production level of
approximately 70,000 oz PGM per annum in 2014.
PLA has two other advanced shallow PGM projects in South
Africa, the Rooderand Platinum Project (PLA earning 70% from
Atla Mining) and the Kalahari Platinum (PLA earning 49% from
ARMplatinum).
Following completion of a positive Pre Feasibility Study,
development of the 4 Moz 4E PGM Rooderand Project is planned
to commence as soon as a Mining Right is issued, expected in
early 2014. Development envisages an initial 10 year life open
pit operation, followed by a further 6 years of treatment of
low grade ore. This could be followed by a further 7 years of
production from underground, producing 120,000 4E PGM ozs per
annum.
Following the completion of a positive Definitive Feasibility
Study, development of the 6.7 Moz PGM open pit Kalahari
Platinum Project it is proposed to make application for a
Mining Right in early 2013 with a view to being in a position
to commence development in late 2014. The study envisages a
production rate of 100,000 ozs PGM per annum.
16 January 2013
Johannesburg
Sponsor
Sasfin Capital (a division of Sasfin Bank Limited)
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