Bluebird Merchant Ventures Limited Operational and Permitting Update (4202E)
July 04 2019 - 2:00AM
UK Regulatory
TIDMBMV
RNS Number : 4202E
Bluebird Merchant Ventures Limited
04 July 2019
4 July 2019
Bluebird Merchant Ventures Ltd
(the "Company" or "Bluebird")
Operational and Permitting Update
Bluebird Merchant Ventures (EPIC: BMV), the Korean focused gold
development group, is pleased to announce an operational and
permitting update.
On 13 June 2019 the Company published a Prospectus, which
included an expected timetable (end of June 2019), with regards to
the permits being granted for the Gubong and Kochang projects. When
the permits are granted it will enable both mines to be re-opened
and for gold production to commence.
The next stage of the process for the Gubong permit application
is an administrative panel at central government level, which will
to consider the application. This is a one day process, currently
scheduled to take place in August 2019.
The Kochang permit application is still being assessed. The
delay is due to a change in the Counter Measure Against Natural
Disasters Act, which had a section pertaining to mining which
potentially allowed for multiple interpretations. The Company has
since lobbied the Ministry Interior and Safety for an official
favourable interpretation to be given. The lobbying was supported
by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE), Korea
Resource Corporation (KORES) and Korea Institute of Geoscience and
Mineral Resources (KIGAM) as well as related law reform think
tanks.
This action was successful and the proclamation is in the
process of being distributed to all government departments. MOTIE
has also informed the Province regarding the change of
interpretation ahead of the distribution of the proclamation. This
reflects the importance of Bluebird's South Korean projects for the
revival of the mining industry. The elevation of the permitting
process to central government level is on the basis that the
projects are considered to be of 'national interest'.
Furthermore, in the recently published Prospectus, the Company
was required to give a Working Capital Statement to address various
potential outcomes over the subsequent twelve months. The key
outcomes were, that if the permits were not granted by the end of
June that the Company would need to raise up to USD 350,000 to
cover a period of twelve months whilst awaiting permits to be
granted. This funding is not required to be available in full
initially and could be spread over the period.
Management have consistently been the largest investor to date
in Bluebird. As such, the Company expects to put in place
sufficient debt funding provided by management, alongside several
significant shareholders, in order to bridge the gap until permits
are issued. The Company expects to update the market shortly.
In addition, the Company has agreed with KORES to push back the
timetable of the grant that was given to the Company (as announced
on 9 May 2019) to a later date, to be determined once the permits
have been granted.
Bluebird are applying for 62,385,235 shares to be retroactively
admitted to trading on the London Stock Exchange. The shares had
been issued by the registrar, but the separate process to admit the
shares to the Official List and to the London Stock Exchange was
not previously completed. The admittance is expected to happen
around 11 July 2019. These 62,385,235 shares are counted for from
the IPO date (April 2016) until immediately prior to the recent
issuance of shares. No new shares are being issued and there will
be no changes to the issued share capital.
Colin Patterson, Chief Executive Officer, commented:
"I am pleased the authorities in South Korea continue to be
supportive of reviving the mining industry and that our projects
are central to that objective. Permitting is always the key
milestone in seeking to progress a project beyond the exploration
phase to the stage of gold production. The process we have
experienced thus far has been so much faster than I have ever seen
in four decades in the mining industry. It is also encouraging that
the authorities are looking to ensure that the various laws that
govern mining are clear for all. To my knowledge, our permit
applications when successful will be the first permits to re-open a
gold mine in two decades. As such, Bluebird is really a trailblazer
in reinvigorating the mining industry. With said confidence
management continues to be happy to support the project."
THIS ANNOUNCEMENT CONTAINS INSIDE INFORMATION FOR THE PURPOSES
OF ARTICLE 7 OF THE MARKET ABUSE REGULATION EU 596/2014 ("MAR")
Enquiries:
Bluebird Merchant Ventures Ltd +44 (0) 7797 859986
Jonathan Morley-Kirk, Non-Executive
Chairman
SP Angel Corporate Finance LLP
Ewan Leggat + 44 (0) 20 3470 0470
Blytheweigh +44 (0) 20 7138 3204
Tim Blythe / Camilla Horsfall
/ Julia Tilley
www.bluebirdmv.com
@BluebirdIR
Notes to Editors
The Gubong mine was once the second largest producing gold mine
in South Korea until its closure in 1971 when gold prices were
US$40 per ounce. The mine consists of nine shallow dipping stacked
veins. Although production was mainly from vein number six, five
other veins were mined from 1928 until its closure. Over 17,000
metres of drilling was carried out over the years and there are
over 120 kilometres of existing underground development.
The Kochang mine is a gold-silver mine that operated between
1928 and 1975 and produced over five million ounces of silver at
over 1000 g/t and 110,000 ounces of gold at 19.6 g/t. This gold
production was mainly derived from the three main veins at the
North East end of the "Gold Mine" part of Kochang, with the
majority of the silver production from the "Silver Mine" some 2.5
kilometres to the south west. The mine closed in 1975 when the gold
price was USD 140 per ounce. Today the mine consists of three
steeply dipping veins. Bluebird has opened up three kilometres of
original development, taken over 400 samples and has confirmed
process viability by carrying out initial metallurgical test
work.
This information is provided by RNS, the news service of the
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END
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