S. Africa?s DRD says High Court validates shares issue

South African gold miner Durban Roodepoort Deep Ltd. said on Monday it had successfully applied to the country's High Court to validate the issue of 8.25 million shares in the company.

The original issue of these shares was invalid, the company said in a statement Monday. The stock was issued to creditors of Australian miner Laverton Gold and its subsidiary BT Barisan Tropical Mining in July and October 1999 in exchange for the Rawas gold mine in South Sumatra, Indonesia.

The Rawas mine ceased production in March 2000 and was written off by the company that year, DRD said.

The company said that the validation order was granted despite an application for a postponement submitted by lawyers acting for DRD non-executive director Roger Kebble.

Kebble was previously deputy chairman of DRD.

Current Chairman Mark Wellesley-Wood said that all matters being investigated with regard to irregular transactions connected with Rawas were now concluded and that the board will decide July 23 whether to take legal action for recovery of the loss made on the Rawas mine.

Wellesley-Wood and the Kebble mining family have been in conflict over control of DRD recently.

Kebble-controlled Consolidated African Mines Ltd. and JCI Gold Ltd. have been served a summons by DRD, which is South Africa's fourth-biggest gold producer.

DRD is claiming around 39.9 million rand (US$= R10.1550) in payments relating to transactions between it and the two mining companies. (*)