Caledonia buys Motapa mining company
VICTORIA Falls Stock Exchange-listed Caledonia Mining Corporation has bought Motapa Mining Company UK, whose gold claims sit next to Bilboes in southern Zimbabwe.
Caledonia has already agreed a deal to buy Bilboes which made Motapa claims a “high priority”.
The miner, which also owns Blanket Mine near Gwanda, bought Motapa from Bulawayo Mining Company, a unit of the London-registered Metallon Corporation which owns How Mine near Bulawayo.
The purchase price is undisclosed but is below the regulatory disclosure threshold, the mining firm said on Wednesday.
Commenting on the acquisition, Caledonia chief executive officer Mark Learmonth, said they were pleased to have concluded the purchase of Motapa.
“Given its large-scale, excellent geological prospectivity and its strategic location adjacent to Bilboes, Motapa was a high priority acquisition for Caledonia,” he said.
“We look forward to developing an exploration programme for Motapa as we target the large-scale gold belt surrounding the Bilboes project.”
With the central shaft at Blanket now fully operational and production targeting 80 000 ounces of gold per year, Learmonth said they anticipated that the company would deploy the incremental cashflow arising from Blanket to its exploration and project development portfolio in Zimbabwe.
“The acquisition of Motapa following the signing of a sale and purchase agreement to acquire Bilboes and the acquisition of Maligreen demonstrate that over the last 12 months Caledonia has established a pipeline of high-quality exploration and development projects,” he said.
“This is in addition to the potential for further growth at Blanket where we are optimistic about its exploration potential.”
In July, Caledonia signed an agreement to buy Bilboes Gold for about US$53,3 million.
Tabled for consideration to stitch the deal are about 5,1 million Caledonia shares, representing about 28,5% of Caledonia’s fully diluted equity, and a 1% net smelter royalty on the project’s revenues.
Formerly owned by Anglo American Corporation, Bilboes is a large, high-grade gold deposit located about 75km north of Bulawayo. Bilboes Gold is owned by Toziyana Resources which controls 50% shareholding, Baker Steel Resources Trust (24%) and Infinite Treasure with 26% stake.
Upon successful completion of the transaction, Victor Gapare, a prominent Zimbabwean mining entrepreneur, who controls Toziyana Resources, will be appointed executive director of Caledonia.-newsday
