TORONTO (miningweekly.com) – Shares in junior Ventana Gold fell sharply on Friday morning, after the company revealed late on Thursday that the owner of the mineral rights to its La Bodega property, in Colombia, is challenging the terms of its agreement with Ventana.

The stock, which closed on Thursday at C$11,23 a share, opened at C$9,00 on Friday. It had recovered to C$9,65 just before midday, still a decline of 14,1%.

Ventana said on Thursday that the seller of the property is seeking arbitration, arguing that the terms of the agreement with Ventana do not comply with Colombian law.

The rights owner is trying to invalidate the option agreement and have the property returned, Ventana said.

However, the company has sought legal advice and is confident the agreement will be upheld in arbitration.

Ventana has reported encouraging high-grade results from drilling at La Bodega, and its shares have gained dramatically over 2009.

The company is working on a scoping study and plans to publish an initial NI 43-101 resource estimate for the project early next year.

Meanwhile, Ventana also reported on Thursday that it was in “advanced discussions” which could result in the acquisition of the company by a third party.

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