Fura Completes Acquisition of Colombian Emerald Mine, Coscuez
January 22 2018 - 7:00AM
Fura Gems Inc. (TSXV:FURA) is pleased to announce
that it has completed its acquisition of 76% of the issued and
outstanding shares of Esmeracol S.A.
(“
Esmeracol”), which owns a 100% interest in
mining licence no. 122 – 95M (the “
Coscuez
Licence”).
Dev Shetty, President & CEO of Fura,
commented: “Fura has achieved one more important milestone by
adding the iconic Colombian emerald mine, Coscuez, to its
portfolio. With this acquisition, Fura now has two important silos
in its portfolio, Colombian emeralds and Mozambican rubies. Fura
will now work towards modernisation of the Coscuez emerald mine and
deployment of the best health and safety standards for its
employees while keeping the environmental impact minimal. Fura will
also closely work with the local community and relevant authorities
to promote the social-economic development in the region. We would
like to thank our local partner and also the entire team on the
ground in the Colombia for the dedication and hard work.”
The Coscuez Emerald
Property
The Coscuez Licence covers an area of 46
hectares and includes exclusive rights for the exploration,
construction and mining of emerald deposits granted by the
Government of the Republic of Colombia within the area historically
known as the “Coscuez Mine” in the municipality of San Pablo de
Borbur, Department of Boyacá. The population of San Pablo de Borbur
municipality is 9,189 people, with 28.69% of the population
resident in the village (vereda) of Coscuez. The municipality is
predominantly rural with a local economy currently based on the
twin activities of mining and farming. Fura will continue
mining activities on the Coscuez License with the view to improve
and optimize mining operations.
Transaction Terms
As part of the consideration, Fura has paid
Emporium HS S.A.S. (“Emporium”) US$2.50 million on
closing and issued 363,872 common shares. Fura now owns a 76%
interest in Esmeracol and has assumed the complete management
control of the Coscuez mine. Emporium will continue to hold a
20.10% free carried interest in Esmeracol, subject to a
shareholders’ agreement containing restrictions on transfer of
shares, a right of first refusal, drag along rights and other terms
standard for an agreement of this nature. The balance of 3.9% will
continue to be held by third parties.
Under the terms of the share purchase agreement
relating to the transaction, Fura has agreed to the following
additional payments:
- US$2.00 million on the 12-month anniversary of the
closing;
- US$2.50 million on the 24-month anniversary of the closing;
and,
- US$3.00 million on the 36-month anniversary of the
closing.
In addition, Fura will assume certain expenses
of Esmeracol not exceeding US$5 million. If Esmeracol earns a net
profit of US$17 million or more in a fiscal year, then Fura will
pay to Emporium an additional one-off bonus of US$3 million.
The common shares issued to Emporium are subject
to a four month statutory hold period. The transaction was an arm’s
length transaction for the purposes of the TSXV policies and Fura
has not paid any finder’s fee relating thereto.
Technical information in respect of the Coscuez
property is available in the technical report entitled “Technical
report on the 122-95M emerald license in the Boyacá district,
Colombia”, dated with an effective date of November 15, 2017 filed
under Fura’s SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com.
For more information, please
contact:
Fura Gems Inc. |
|
Dev Shetty - President & Chief Executive Officer |
Tel: +971 (0) 4 240 8760dev.shetty@furagems.com |
Investor Relations |
|
Vikram Pathak |
Tel: 1-647-276-7816vikram.pathak@furagems.com |
About Fura Gems Inc.
Fura Gems Inc. is engaged in the exploration and
acquisition of gemstone licences. Fura’s headquarters are located
in Toronto, Canada and its administrative headquarters are located
in the Almas Tower, Dubai. Fura is listed on the TSX Venture
Exchange under the ticker symbol “FURA”.
Fura owns an 80% effective interest in four ruby
licences (4392, 3868, 3869 and 6811) in Mozambique. Fura is also
engaged in the exploration of resource properties in Colombia and
owns a 100% interest in the emerald licence ECH -121. In
addition, Fura owns 76% of the issued and outstanding shares of
Esmeracol S.A., which wholly owns the Coscuez emerald mine in
Boyacá, Colombia.
Regulatory Statements
This press release may contain “forward looking
information” within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities
legislation. Forward looking information includes, but is not
limited to, statements with respect to the prospectivity of the
Coscuez Licence, the Company’s ability to raise capital, the
Company’s ability to make the deferred payments to Emporium; the
Company’s proposed activity at the Coscuez mine; the Company’s
exploration activities and the Company’s performance. Generally,
forward looking information can be identified by the use of
forward-looking terminology such as “plans”, “expects” or “does not
expect”, “is expected”, “budget”, “scheduled”, “estimates”,
“forecasts”, “intends”, “anticipates” or “does not anticipate”, or
“believes”, or variations of such words and phrases or state that
certain actions, events or results “may”, “could”, “would”, “might”
or “will be taken”, “occur” or “be achieved”. Forward-looking
information is subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties
and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of
activity, performance or achievements of the Company to be
materially different from those expressed or implied by such
forward-looking information, including but not limited to: the risk
with respect to the ability of Fura to finance the additional
payments relating to the acquisition; uncertainties with respect to
the successful integration of Esmeracol to Fura’s business; general
business, economic, competitive, geopolitical and social
uncertainties; the actual results of exploration activities;
regulatory risks; risks inherent in foreign operations,
uncertainties with respect to Coscuez deposit, which has never been
subject to modern mining methods; legacy environmental risks, title
risks and other risks of the mining industry. Although the Company
has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual
results to differ materially from those contained in
forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause
results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can
be no assurance that such information will prove to be accurate, as
actual results and future events could differ materially from those
anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not
place undue reliance on forward looking information. The Company
does not undertake to update any forward-looking information,
except in accordance with applicable securities laws.
NEITHER 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.