adminTawanda Musarurwa
Junior mining company, Vast Resources’ shareholders have approved the sale of the mining group’s gold mines in Zimbabwe to Southern Africa Trade Finance.
Shareholder approval was the only remaining condition precedent to the disposal of the company’s gold assets, including the Eureka and Pickstone Peerless gold mines.
“Following the approval by shareholders, all conditions precedent in relation to the sale by the company of its 50,01 percent interest in Ronquil Enterprises (Pvt) Ltd, through which the company holds its Zimbabwe gold assets, being the remaining 25,01 percent economic interest in the Pickstone Peerless Gold Mine and associated assets (principally the Eureka Gold Mine) have been satisfied and the transaction has now completed,” the group said this week.
The group said the transaction reduced other loan and liabilities on its balance sheet by nearly US$38 million to US$10,5 million.
Through the sale, a US$3,4 million loan to sub-Sahara Goldia Investments (SSGI) is largely repaid and this gives the company the ability to raise finance from other parties.
Following the completion of the disposal, Vast said it will focus on its Heritage diamond concession in Zimbabwe and Baita Plai mine in Romania.
“The Heritage Concession will require significant investment, not only financial but in human resource to enable near term positive cash flow for the business. The divesting of the gold assets in Zimbabwe allows us to focus all of our Zimbabwe finance and management on this key component of the company’s growth,” said Vast’s CEO Andrew Prelea earlier this year.
Bongani Ndlovu