JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – African Barrick Gold (ABG) concluded negotiations with a syndicate of commercial banks, led by Standard Bank, for the provision of an export credit-backed term loan facility of $142-million for the expansion of its Bulyanhulu process plant, in Tanzania.
The facility was put in place to fund the bulk of the construction of a new carbon-in-leach circuit at the process plant at Bulyanhulu – one of the company’s key growth projects.
ABG CEO Greg Hawkins said that, while the company had sufficient cash on the balance sheet to fund the expansion, it decided to exploit a cost-effective form of project financing to ensure it maintained maximum flexibility as it looked to drive improved returns from the company’s asset base.
"The debt financing of this expansion is a clear example of the focus we have placed on efficient capital allocation,” he said in a statement.