Business
Strategic Review Update
Strategic Review Update.
About this update from Goldplat Plc
[{"type":"text","content":"\n Strategic Review UpdateGoldplat plc / Ticker: GDP / Index: AIM / Sector: Mining & Exploration4 June 2013Goldplat plc ('Goldplat' or 'the Company')Strategic Review and Trading UpdateGoldplat plc, the AIM listed gold producer in Africa, announces an update on its strategic review undertaken by new CEO, Russell Lamming, which is focussed on identifying and realigning Goldplat's business model to primarily concentrate on its strong cash generating capabilities of its gold recovery operations in South Africa and Ghana and the growth potential of this business across the continent. Accordingly, in order to eliminate losses caused by continued operational constraints (see RNS announcements dated 10 January 2013 and 4 March 2013) and the current uncertain gold price environment, the Company has put the Kilimapesa Gold Mine in Kenya ('KGM') on a care and maintenance programme until the project economics can justify the reopening of the mine. KGM has retrenched a further 50 employees and is now maintaining the mining operation on a skeleton staff. The processing plant will continue to process stockpiles of ore at the plant to cover the costs of the care and maintenance programme. In terms of the Company's gold recovery operations, which recover gold from waste products of the gold mining process, Goldplat has also completed a review of Gold Recovery Ghana ('GRG'), its Ghanaian operation in Tema. Following this process the Company is looking to re-focus its recovery model to replicate its successful South African operation, which secures waste-products predominantly from blue chip mining customers. Accordingly, due to the continued margin pressures sustained primarily from purchasing materials from artisanal and small scale miners, the Company has stopped procurement of material for GRG's Carbon in Leach ('CIL') plant and is in the process of closing this section down and will remain so until material that meets the Company's margin criteria is sourced on a sustainable basis. Notwithstanding the closure of the Tema CIL plant, GRG continues to procure material to supply the Nzema mine in Ghana as per its tolling agreement that processes tailings off site with Endeavour Resources. On a wider level, the incinerator section, which processes fine carbon from the major gold producers, is...