Ashurst acts for Geopacific Resources on A 100 million financing for Woodlark Gold Project in PNG
29 June 2021
The facility and stream, coupled with the funds raised via an equity placement earlier in 2021, will be used to fund the development of Geopacific's Woodlark Gold Project in Papua New Guinea.
The transaction also includes an agreement by Geopacific Resources to issue 5,404,655 fully paid ordinary shares and 2,702,328 unlisted options to Sprott (strike price of A$0.322 and exercisable within 5.25 years from the date of issue).
The Woodlark Gold Project is a high margin gold project with significant exploration upside. Securing this facility is an important milestone for Geopacific Resources as it looks to take advantage of a strong gold price and low interest rates.
Geopacific Resources Chief Executive Officer, Tim Richards commented:
"We are delighted to partner with Sprott on the development of the Woodlark Gold Project. The Sprott financing, coupled with the funds raised via our equity placement earlier in 2021, where Sprott was also a participant, provides the capital required to fully fund the project and associated activities. The Company has continued to work on the project ahead of the financial close to ensure the integrity of the project schedule and to deliver first gold in Q4 CY2022. With exploration recommencing in H2 2021 focused on expanding Kulumadau and Busai pits I look forward to providing further updates to the market on our activities in coming periods."
Sprott Managing Partner, Greg Caione commented:
"As one of the largest investors dedicated to the natural resources sector, Sprott is excited to partner with Geopacific on the development of the Woodlark Gold Project. Our financing of Geopacific is consistent with our strategy to provide innovative and flexible capital to maximise the value of exceptional projects and support strong management teams. We are pleased to be investing in Papua New Guinea – a country with a strong and rich mining culture, in a socially and environmentally responsible manner that is consistent with industry and International Finance Corporation guidelines and protocols. With a supportive government, our expectation is that the Woodlark Gold Project will create jobs and training for the communities of Wood Woodlark Island, and assist Papua New Guinea's overall economic growth given current global circumstances."
Ashurst Partner, David Mason said:
"We are very pleased to have supported Geopacific Resources on the successful financing of its Woodlark Gold Project by a combination of project debt and a callable gold stream provided by Sprott Resources together with the issue by Geopacific Resources of shares and options to Sprott. This is a significant achievement for Geopacific Resources as it is both its first project and Sprott's first financing in Papua New Guinea. Our Australian and PNG teams look forward to continuing to assist Geopacfic Resources and Woodlark Gold on the project."
The Ashurst team was led by partner David Mason, who was assisted by partner Roger Davies, counsel Tim Glenn, senior associate Ben Stewart and lawyers Fiffy Che, Meng-Yeow Lim, Jerome Kadamongariga and John O'Connell.
The transaction also includes an agreement by Geopacific Resources to issue 5,404,655 fully paid ordinary shares and 2,702,328 unlisted options to Sprott (strike price of A$0.322 and exercisable within 5.25 years from the date of issue).
The Woodlark Gold Project is a high margin gold project with significant exploration upside. Securing this facility is an important milestone for Geopacific Resources as it looks to take advantage of a strong gold price and low interest rates.
Geopacific Resources Chief Executive Officer, Tim Richards commented:
"We are delighted to partner with Sprott on the development of the Woodlark Gold Project. The Sprott financing, coupled with the funds raised via our equity placement earlier in 2021, where Sprott was also a participant, provides the capital required to fully fund the project and associated activities. The Company has continued to work on the project ahead of the financial close to ensure the integrity of the project schedule and to deliver first gold in Q4 CY2022. With exploration recommencing in H2 2021 focused on expanding Kulumadau and Busai pits I look forward to providing further updates to the market on our activities in coming periods."
Sprott Managing Partner, Greg Caione commented:
"As one of the largest investors dedicated to the natural resources sector, Sprott is excited to partner with Geopacific on the development of the Woodlark Gold Project. Our financing of Geopacific is consistent with our strategy to provide innovative and flexible capital to maximise the value of exceptional projects and support strong management teams. We are pleased to be investing in Papua New Guinea – a country with a strong and rich mining culture, in a socially and environmentally responsible manner that is consistent with industry and International Finance Corporation guidelines and protocols. With a supportive government, our expectation is that the Woodlark Gold Project will create jobs and training for the communities of Wood Woodlark Island, and assist Papua New Guinea's overall economic growth given current global circumstances."
Ashurst Partner, David Mason said:
"We are very pleased to have supported Geopacific Resources on the successful financing of its Woodlark Gold Project by a combination of project debt and a callable gold stream provided by Sprott Resources together with the issue by Geopacific Resources of shares and options to Sprott. This is a significant achievement for Geopacific Resources as it is both its first project and Sprott's first financing in Papua New Guinea. Our Australian and PNG teams look forward to continuing to assist Geopacfic Resources and Woodlark Gold on the project."
The Ashurst team was led by partner David Mason, who was assisted by partner Roger Davies, counsel Tim Glenn, senior associate Ben Stewart and lawyers Fiffy Che, Meng-Yeow Lim, Jerome Kadamongariga and John O'Connell.
