TORONTO (miningweekly.com) – Canadian gold junior Banro is undertaking an overnight marketed offering of common shares, and will use the proceeds to fund work at its Democratic Republic of Congo gold projects.

The number of shares and pricing for the offering will be determined in the context of the market, with final terms to be determined at the time of pricing, Banro said in a statement on Tuesday evening.

The offering will be conducted through a syndicate of underwriters coled by GMP Securities L.P. and CIBC World Markets Inc, which will be given an over-allotment option to buy additional shares equal to 15% of the offering.

The offering is expected to close on or about June 29, subject to regulatory approval, Banro said.

Last week, the company announced it had increased the proven and probable reserves at its most advanced asset, the Twangiza project, by 23,7% to 4,54 million ounces of gold.

Banro has optimised a feasibility study completed earlier this year on Twangiza, which is now expected to cost $377,43-million, including a contingency of $35,5-million.

The initial capital costs for the project were previously estimated at $409,65-million.

The average annual production during the first five years of operation is now forecast at  262 215 oz of gold, at average operating cash costs of $325/oz.

The optimised study also included an increase in the life-of-mine from 15,06 years to 20,86 years.

In February, Banro raised $14-million in a nonbrokered placement.

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