JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – Strong medium- to long-term fundamentals for copper market have prompted Aim-quoted Bezant Resources to shift its focus to its copper/gold exploration assets in the Philippines and Argentina, including the Mankayan project that contains 800 000 t of copper.
“The copper price over the last 12 months has risen consistently and we believe that the mid- to long-term potential for copper will be strong,” CEO Laurence Read said on Thursday, announcing an internal geological and corporate review of its operations.
He stated that Bezant would seek to identify and assess opportunities to advance the Mankayan project, in the Philippines, and added that a site visit was under way in Argentina to assess its operations.
Recently appointed executive chairperson Colin Bird is supportive of the geological and corporate review and said that it was an opportune time for Bezant to undergo a rigorous examination of its strategic focus and operations.
“I believe that the fundamentals for copper have seldom been so good and that the suite of existing assets held by Bezant presents an enormous opportunity for shareholders. Once our review process, including site visits, has been fully completed, we will provide a further update on our intended focus and future direction," he stated.
Bezant ceased alluvial mining at its Colombian gold/platinum project at the end of 2017, and said that negotiations to find a project partner were continuing.
The copper price gained about 27% during 2017.