PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Graphite miner and manufacturer Valence Industries has short-listed term sheets from a number of debt providers for a A$35-million finance facility to fund the Phase 2 expansion of its operations in South Australia.
The short-listing of debt financiers followed a A$15-million capital raise and share purchase plan in September this year.
The company said that the names of the selected senior debt providers would be released ahead of financial close, which was currently scheduled for early 2015, and would continue to assess project acceleration options ahead of the funding.
Valence said that a senior debt facility would allow the company to adopt the most flexible and appropriate funding models to deliver sustainable shareholder value.
Meanwhile, once regulatory approval was received, the ramp-up of Phase 1 of the operations to full capacity of 14 000 t/y would start. The Phase 2 expansion, would see production increase from 14 000 t/y to 60 000 t/y.