AMN - SOUTH AFRICA: Bushveld to acquire Strategic Minerals Corp

Bushveld Minerals,a diversified mineral development company with a portfolio of vanadium, titanium, iron ore, tin and coal assets in Africa, has agreed exclusivity for the acquisition of Evraz Group SA’s 78.8% economic interest in Strategic Minerals Corp (SMC), a holding company for a group of companies, which owns the producing Vametco vanadium mine and plant in South Africa (Vametco Alloys).

Located on the western limb of the Bushveld complex, Vametco is of one of only two vanadium producing operations in South Africa. It is a debt-free cash generating vanadium operator that is also BEE compliant.

Bushveld Minerals CEO Fortune Mojapelo says: “We are pleased to have agreed exclusivity with Evraz for the acquisition of the Vametco vanadium mine and plant in South Africa. The proposed acquisition is transformational for the company and is exactly in line with our strategy of building our vanadium platform.

“Vametco is a low-cost producing asset with an established management team who have collectively worked across all the vanadium processing plants in South Africa. The asset, located adjacent to our recently acquired Brits vanadium project, offers a unique opportunity to acquire a producing asset at a small fraction of the cost of a similar greenfield asset.

“We have undertaken significant due diligence on this asset for over the past 15 months.”

Vametco Alloys is owned by SMC through its 75% shareholding in South African domiciled Vametco Holdings. In line with Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) legislation in South Africa, Vametco Holdings is 25%-owned by two BEE companies, which include interests for the local landowners and employees.

Vametco Alloys has a mining right for vanadium and other associated minerals over Portion 1 of the farm Uitvalgrond 431 JQ and Portion 1 of the farm Krokodilwaal 426 JQ, in Brits where it operates a mine supplying ore to its vanadium processing plant located on the same properties.

Vametco Alloys uses a Salt Roast processing method to process vanadium-rich magnetite concentrate from its mine to produce 2700 tonnes of vanadium in the form of Nitrovan (a patented vanadium product used in the steel industry) and vanadium oxide (V2O3). The mine has a resource in excess of 30 million tonnes, sufficient to support the operations for more than 20 years at current production levels. Scope exists to expand production capacity through targeted de-bottlenecking interventions at limited capital expenditure.

Vametco Alloys is adjacent to Bushveld Minerals’ recently acquired Brits vanadium project, a greenfield exploration project. The Brits project resource appears to comprise the strike continuation of the Vametco Alloys mine and could enhance the Vametco Alloys operations through its contribution of shallow vanadium-rich resources.

Bushveld Minerals is a mineral development company with a portfolio of vanadium-and titanium bearing iron ore, tin and coal assets in Southern Africa and Madagascar. It owns the Bushveld and Mokopane vanadium projects, Bushveld iron ore project and Mokopane tin project, located on the northern limb of the Bushveld Complex, South Africa. Bushveld also owns the Imaloto coal project in Madagascar through its takeover of Lemur Resources.

www.bushveldminerals.com

News courtesy of International Mining