Company is prioritising its majority-owned Tulu Kapi Gold Project in Ethiopia
Staff Writer, Zawya Projects
UK-based KEFI Gold and Copper has announced that it will reduce its stake in its Saudi Arabian joint venture with ARTAR (Abdulrahman Saad AlRashid & Sons) from 25 percent to 15 percent as part of a strategic shift toward its majority-owned Ethiopian assets.
The exploration and development company is prioritising its majority-owned Tulu Kapi Gold Project in Ethiopia, which is advancing toward the finance, construction, and production stages.
The dilution in the Saudi JV Gold and Minerals Company (GMCO) results from the AIM-listed company’s decision to forego a $10 million contribution to ongoing exploration activities with ARTAR having financed all GMCO exploration over the past year, according to a press statement.
KEFI is also exploring the potential sale of its remaining 15 percent stake in GMCO, with valuations expected to reflect market conditions and a possible premium to historical costs, the statement said, adding that a final decision is anticipated within the next six months.
Meanwhile, GMCO has invested $80 million to date on exploration and feasibility studies for the Hawiah Copper-Gold-Zinc-Silver Project and the Jibal Qutman Gold Project, which have reported gold equivalent resources of approximately 3 million ounces.
In the next phase, both projects will employ a two-stage development strategy, starting with open-pit mining, followed by deeper resource exploration and metallurgical optimisation.
According to the statement, KEFI’s decision to reduce its Saudi JV stake aligns with its strategy to optimise capital allocation while maintaining flexibility in the Kingdom.
(Writing by P Deol; Editing by Anoop Menon)
(anoop.menon@lseg.com)
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