Corality has been providing transaction advisory services to Finders Resources for the project financing of the Wetar copper project. The project is located on the island of Wetar in Indonesia.
Corality is delighted to share Finders recent announcement that its three Mandated Lead Arrangers, Barclays Capital, Credit Suisse AG and Standard Bank plc, have received credit approval to provide US$138 million of project finance facilities to Finders. Finders Managing Director, Chris Farmer has publicly stated that this approval is a significant vote of confidence in the Wetar copper project:
“In a very difficult global banking environment, all three MLA’s have received credit and other internal approvals. It speaks highly of the economics of the Wetar copper project and the faith recognised global leaders in mining project finance have in its long term viability.”
Finders Resources, Wetar copper project Indonesia
Corality’s project advisory team has been working closely with Finders since January 2011. The Wetar copper project has proven to be a very interesting and challenging project where Corality’s advisory services have been put to the test.
Nick Crawley, Managing Director and Head of Advisory services states:
“I am delighted with this outcome, it is a testament not just to the great quality of this project but also the professionalism of management and the banking group working together through a tough global credit environment. Early in 2011 we worked closely with management to appoint banks who understood the project and who had stable and resource savvy credit teams. Once the team was created we then supported Finders management by allowing them to stay one step ahead of the upcoming decisions, from pricing and debt structure through to hedging and their overall financing strategy.”
Since the consolidation between Navigator Project Finance and Corality in July 2011, Corality has boosted its focus on advisory services, providing transaction support, valuations and board level decision support.
After receiving credit approval for the Wetar copper project, Finders is now focusing on moving into the construction phase.
“Finders is one of the few listed ASX pre-production copper companies with a clear path and timeline to production. The coming months will be important for us as we move into the construction phase – 2012 will be a very big year for the company,” Mr Farmer said.
About the Wetar copper project
Finders Resources is the operator of the Wetar Copper Project (95% Interest) located in Indonesia. The Wetar Copper Project comprises two high grade deposits, Kali Kuning and Lerokis, which are located within 3km from the coast and suitable for open pit mining.
The project benefits from having existing infrastructure in place, particularly a wharf, camp and roads and partially pre-stripped copper ore bodies from a prior gold mining era. Since February 2009, Finders has successfully operated a 5 tonne per day SX-EW demonstration plant to test copper sulphide leach kinetics, optimise process design and provide data required for project finance. The demonstration plant produced and sold over 2,500 tonnes of LME Grade A copper cathode, all of which was sold at a premium to the LME price and without specification issues.
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