Banks agree to provide loan for Archipelago?s Toka Tindung gold project
Monday, March 27 2006 - 08:40 AM WIB
Archipelago Resources plc announced Monday that four banks had agreed to provide a US$38.5 million debt and US$4.0 million cost overrun facility for the development of its 85 percent-owned Toka Tindung Gold Project in North Sulawesi.
Archipelago said the four banks are Rothschild, Australia and New Zealand Banking Group, Societe Generale and WestLB AG.
The syndication was arranged by N.M. Rothschild & Sons (Australia) Limited following the granting to Rothschild of an exclusive financing mandate to provide debt finance and hedging facilities for the project, Archipelago added.
The Toka Tindung Gold Project has a resource of 1.75 million ounces (ozs) of gold equivalent, of which at least 0.9 million ozs will initially be mineable by open pit. The project is targeted to produce an average 160,000 ozs per annum for the initial 5 years of the current 6 year mine life. Production is expected to commence in early 2007. (Robert)