TORONTO (miningweekly.com) – Sydney- and Toronto-listed Alacer Gold has declared a special dividend to distribute the proceeds from the sale of its 49% interest in the Frog’s Leg mine, in Western Australia, back to shareholders.
The company on Wednesday said its board had declared a special cash dividend of 24c a share, for about $70-million, which would be payable on April 30 (Toronto time), to shareholders of record at the close of business on April 19.
The company in February decided to sell off the Frog’s Leg project and an 18-month toll treatment agreement for a total transaction value of A$171-million, following a strategic review of its operations.
CEO David Quinlivan at the time said 2013 would be a “back-to-basics” year for Alacer from an operational perspective, as it focused on gold production to increase its free cash flow.
Quinlivan noted that the sale of the Frog’s Leg mine crystalised full value for Alacer’s noncontrolling, minority interest, and the cash realised would be used to repay debt and return capital to shareholders. The mine was sold to La Mancha Resources Australia.
Alacer’s Toronto-listed stock declined by 5.75% on Wednesday to trade at C$3.77 apiece in afternoon trade.