PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Dual-listed Orocobre on Thursday announced that it had raised A$37.1-milion in a placement to domestic and international investors to fund initiatives at its Borax Argentina division.
About 17.66-million shares would be placed under the company’s 15% capacity, at a price of A$2.10 each.
Orocobre MD Richard Seville said that A$20-million of the proceeds of the capital raising would be used to fund the Borax Argentina expansion and efficiency initiatives, with A$17-million used for corporate working capital.
“We are very pleased with the strong demand and support for the placement from both our existing shareholders and new domestic and international institutional investors,” said Seville.
“This reflects the confidence in Orocobre and our lithium and industrial mineral assets in Argentina. Construction of our flagship Olaroz lithium project is running on schedule and within budget, and we are looking forward to rapidly pushing ahead with the initiatives at Borax Argentina.”
Seville noted that the funding that Orocobre had put in place would allow the company to fast-track its plans and to create a strong platform for growth.
“Additionally, we considered it prudent to put in place a level of working capital buffer at the corporate level, which we believe is appropriate for a company of our size and opportunity.”
The Borax Argentina division was acquired from diversified major Rio Tinto in 2012, and has an operating history of about 50 years. The operations include three openpit mines, concentrators, refining capacity and land-holdings.
Orocobre is listed on the ASX and TSX.