Business
Andash Project - Settlement
Andash Project - Settlement.
About this update from Shearwater Group Plc
[{"type":"text","content":"\n RNS Number : 5601B Aurum Mining PLC 19 August 2008 \n \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n19 August 2008\n\n\n\n\n\nAURUM MINING PLC\n('Aurum' or 'the Company')\n\nSettlement reached in the Civil Case\n\nAurum Mining plc (AIM: AUR) is giving an update to the market following the restoration of its securities on AIM on 19 August 2008.\nThe Aurum Board is pleased to report that it has now reached a settlement with Marsa AG, the plaintiff in the civil case in which the Company's wholly owned subsidiaries Andash Mining Company and Kaldora Company Limited were named as co-defendants.\nThere will now be a hearing in the Bishkek City Court on 25 August 2008 at which time the Board fully expects the civil case to be closed by the judge with a formal judgement in favour of Aurum's subsidiaries expected shortly thereafter. A favourable judgement will also lead to the lifting of the financial injunction currently in place against Andash Mining Company.\nIn order to prevent Marsa AG, from appealing against the decision of the Bishkek City Court and from bringing claims in other jurisdictions, Aurum has agreed to acquire Marsa AG as part of the settlement. By acquiring Marsa AG, Aurum will neutralise the disputed underlying cause of action and the challenge of Aurum's entitlement to the Andash asset. It is anticipated that the completion date for the acquisition of Marsa AG will be 31 October 2008.\nWith the lifting of the financial injunction, Aurum will be able to focus solely on bringing the Andash asset into production. While the original target of bringing the Andash Zone 1 mine into production by the end of this year will not now be met as a result of the litigation, the project plan is currently being reworked to determine the revised costs and timings of the project. The Company will give guidance on these in its preliminary results announcement in September 2008.\nDuring the course of the summer the Company's technical team have been working on a new process opportunity that, if approved, will significantly reduce the CAPEX and on-going operating costs of the Zone 1 mine. Aurum currently has cash balances, post the acquisi...