Gulf reports progress of West Timor manganese project
Thursday, June 20 2013 - 01:41 AM WIB
ASX-listed Gulf Mines Limited (Gulf), which is planning to acquire stake in Asia Minerals Corporation Ltd (AMC) reported in a statement progress of the latter?s manganese project in West Timor.
Gulf said in the statement received Thursday that AMC?s subsidiary PT Asia Mangan Grup (AMG) has recently finalized the purchase in its own right 100% of a manganese tenement for US $600,000 from which it plans to commence its own mining operations. AMG is also in final negotiations to acquire two additional highly prospective manganese tenements in West Timor.
AMG currently sources its manganese from local artisanal mining groups for consolidation into bulk cargoes, the statement said. AMG advises that it has completed initial supply negotiations for approximately 30,000 tons which will form the basis of the first three cargoes with the first cargo planned for July 2013. ?Local administrative delays have been experienced in West Timor but they have now been overcome to enable the start of shipping,? the statement said.
In addition, AMG has a Joint Operating Agreement with PT Putra Indonesia Jaya, a local group holding a mining tenement license, to acquire and process by grading and stock piling with consolidation into bulk cargoes of high grade manganese for shipment to overseas buyers.
AMG, which has been granted an export license by the Indonesian Ministry of Trade, is currently the only manganese group to hold such a license.
?It has been a serious struggle to get through all the immense bureaucratic red tape at the three levels of Government which has taken two years of full time effort, but we are now ready to start exporting,? said AMG?s President Director Michael Kiernan.
Gulf will shortly be dispatching the notice of meeting to its shareholders seeking approval for the acquisition of the shareholding in AMC from Leprechaun Holdings Pty Ltd.
Editing by Reiner Simanjuntak