VANCOUVER, British Columbia--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
Sunridge Gold Corp. (the “Company” or “Sunridge”) (SGC: TSX.V/SGCNF:
OTCQX) is pleased to announce that Sunridge and the Eritrean National
Mining Corporation (“ENAMCO”) have executed a shareholders’ agreement
(the “Shareholders’ Agreement”) to organize and operate the Asmara
Mining Share Company (“AMSCo”) the operating entity which will own and
operate the Asmara copper-zinc-gold mining project (the “Property”) in
Eritrea.
AMSCo will be owned 60% by Sunridge and 40% by ENAMCO (30% participating
and 10% free carried interest) and will have a board of directors of
five, comprising three from Sunridge and two from ENAMCO. All future
project development or exploration costs will be shared two-thirds
Sunridge and one-third ENAMCO.
Michael Hopley, President and CEO of Sunridge said “Signing the AMSCo
shareholder agreement is another major milestone that we have now
achieved in the development of the Asmara mine. The payments from ENAMCO
to Sunridge totaling US$5 million over the next few months, together
with the relief from having to fund our in-country programs through
AMSCo for the next US$6 million of expenditures, will provide Sunridge
with a healthy treasury. We are very pleased to have ENAMCO as our
partner and look forward to a continued close working relationship.”
On February 4, 2014, Sunridge announced that it had signed a binding
term sheet for the purchase of the 30% participating interest pursuant
to which ENAMCO agreed to pay Sunridge US$18.33 million in stages prior
to production. Pursuant to the Shareholders’ Agreement, ENAMCO has now
agreed to pay the first US$5 million of the purchase price on the
following accelerated schedule:
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US$2 million to be paid immediately on signing the Shareholders’
Agreement
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US$1 million by September 30, 2014
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US$1 million by October 30, 2014
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US $1 million by November 30, 2014
The balance of the US$13.33 million will be paid in installments
beginning upon signing a finance agreement that secures a significant
portion of the financing required to develop the Property (the
“Financing Agreement”);
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US$6 million to be paid upon on signing the Financing Agreement
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US$4 million 6 months after signing the Financing Agreement
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US$3.3 million 12 months after signing the Financing Agreement
In the Shareholders’ Agreement, the parties have agreed that ENAMCO will
contribute one-third of the funding of expenditures on the project,
including exploration and development retroactive to July 4, 2012, the
date ENAMCO delivered its notice of intention to exercise its full
purchase option. Since then, Sunridge has contributed approximately
US$12 million to the project and now ENAMCO has agreed to fund the next
approximately US$6 million to AMSCo for their portion of retroactive
contributions to the project. The terms of the Shareholders’ Agreement
also contain all the normal provisions regarding the governance and
operations of AMSCo.
ABOUT SUNRIDGE:
Sunridge is a mineral exploration and development company focused on the
acquisition, exploration, discovery and development of base and precious
metal projects on the Asmara Project in Eritrea. Sunridge currently has
approximately 210 million shares outstanding and trades on the TSX
Venture Exchange under the symbol SGC. For additional information on the
Company and its projects please view the slide show on our website at www.sunridgegold.com
or call Greg Davis at the number listed below.
SUNRIDGE GOLD CORP.
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“Michael Hopley”
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For further information contact:
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Michael Hopley, President and Chief Executive Officer
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Greg Davis, VP Business Development
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Email: greg@sunridgegold.com
Tel: 604-688-1263 (direct)
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Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services
Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture
Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of
this release.
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This news release contains forward-looking statements that are based
on the Company’s current expectations and estimates. Forward-looking
statements are frequently characterized by words such as “plan”,
“expect”, “project”, “intend”, “believe”, “anticipate”, “estimate”,
“suggest”, “indicate” and other similar words or statements that certain
events or conditions “may” or “will” occur. Such forward-looking
statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other
factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially
from estimated or anticipated events or results implied or expressed in
such forward-looking statements. Forward looking statements may include
the timing and success of any application for a mining license or of
debt financing and completion of definitive documentation with ENAMCO.
Risk and uncertain factors include, among others: the actual results
of current exploration activities; conclusions of economic evaluations;
changes in project parameters as plans to continue to be refined;
possible variations in ore grade or recovery rates; accidents, labour
disputes and other risks of the mining industry; delays in obtaining
governmental approvals, a mining license, or debt financing,
uncertainties in negotiating commercial arrangements with government
entities; and fluctuations in metal prices. There may be other
factors that cause actions, events or results not to be as anticipated,
estimated or intended. Any forward-looking statement speaks only
as of the date on which it is made and, except as may be required by
applicable securities laws, the Company disclaims any intent or
obligation to update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result
of new information, future events or results or otherwise.
Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and
accordingly undue reliance should not be put on such statements due to
the inherent uncertainty therein.