TORONTO (miningweekly.com) – TSX- and Amex-listed Platinum Group Metals (PTM) has raised C$35-million in an offering of shares and warrants, and will use most of the funds for payments due to Anglo Platinum (Angloplat) as part of the restructuring of the firms' Western Bushveld Joint Venture (WBJV), in South Africa.
“The net proceeds of this financing provides the company with the means to rapidly advance its Western Bushveld projects through value engineering and implementation preparations and we expect to be making solid progress in the weeks ahead,” said president Michael Jones.
“We continue to advance discussions on several strategic paths and we will now be in a stronger position for these discussions."
Wesizwe Platinum, PTM and Angloplat announced in September last year that they had agreed to a restructuring of the JV, giving PTM the right to buy an effective 74% of the WBJV projects one and three, with Wesizwe left holding the balance, as well as 100% of project two.
An equalisation payment to Angloplat by PTM under the original WBJV agreement will become due on the final government approval and transfer of the property interests. This payment currently stands at about R202-million, or C$28-million.
Additional proceeds from the offering will be used to complete a review and update of the feasibility study on the WBJV with current costs and value engineering work, PTM said on Tuesday.
The company will also complete detailed implementation preparations, including working with the key contractors and the potential suppliers of the initial underground development, water and power, and for the drilling for potential upgrades to the resources in the Project 3 area of the WBJV.
Thomas Weisel Partners Canada Inc and RBC Capital Markets acted as joint book runners and colead managers in a syndicate which also included GMP Securities L.P. and Raymond James.
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