Premier African Minerals Limited / Ticker: PREM / Index: AIM / Sector: Mining
30 September 2013
Premier African Minerals Limited (`Premier' or `the Company')
Shareholder Agreement signed with NIEEF for RHA Tungsten Project, Zimbabwe
Premier African Minerals Limited, an AIM quoted multi-commodity natural
resource company with mineral projects located in Western and Southern Africa,
is pleased to announce that RHA Tungsten Private Limited (`RHA') has
simultaneously concluded a shareholder agreement and a management agreement
with the National Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment Fund (`NIEEF'),
representing and acting for and on behalf of the Government of Zimbabwe (`the
Agreements'). RHA owns Premier's RHA Tungsten Project in north-west Zimbabwe
(`the Project'). In accordance with Indigenisation policy, NIEEF will hold 51%
of the issued share capital of RHA. Significantly, Premier's wholly owned
subsidiary, ZimDiv Holdings Limited, which in turn controls the remaining
equity in RHA, is appointed as the Manager of the Project for an initial 5 year
term.
Principal terms of the Agreements include:
* Total expenditure incurred by RHA prior to 1 September 2013 will accrue as
an interest bearing loan due to Premier.
* From 1 September 2013, RHA became responsible for its own funding and
neither Premier nor NIEEF shall be under any obligation to contribute to
its exploration and development costs. Premier will provide interim
assistance for on-going operations until alternative finance is in place.
* Once RHA has obtained sufficient committed finance to enable it to develop
and construct the mine and the Project has achieved commercial production,
Premier will issue to NIEEF such number of new ordinary shares of nil par
value in the capital of Premier as are equal in value, on the basis of a 20
day volume weighted average price prior to such issue, to US$750,000.
* An Entrenched dividend policy that proportions profit distribution to meet
agreed debt repayment terms firstly, and thereafter equally to future
development and dividend payment.
Premier's CEO George Roach commented, "RHA has been an indigenised Zimbabwean
company since Premier first entered into a letter of intent described in our
Admission Document, and the early completion of the Agreements is indicative of
the excellent relationship and mutual understanding that we have enjoyed with
NIEEF for some time now. In particular, that RHA is responsible for its own
development costs both eases the burden on Premier and broadens the sources
from which finance will be available to develop the Project into a low-capex
tungsten mine in the near-term.
"We are in advanced negotiations on an off-take and project finance and we have
committed to the additional confirmatory work suggested in the recently
published Mining Study and Preliminary Economic Assessment that highlighted the
robust economics of the Project with an undiscounted NPV of US$120 million and
IRR before tax of 378% projected."
**ENDS**
For further information please visit www.premierafricanminerals.com or contact
the following:
Pamela Hueston Premier African Minerals Limited Tel: +44 (0) 755 778 3855
Tony Rawlinson Cairn Financial Advisers LLP (Nomad) Tel: +44 (0) 207 148 7900
Jerry Keen Shore Capital Stockbrokers Limited (Broker) Tel: +44 (0) 207 408 4090
Edward Mansfield Shore Capital Stockbrokers Limited (Broker) Tel: +44 (0) 207 408 4090
Felicity Edwards St Brides Media & Finance Ltd (PR) Tel: +44 (0) 20 7236 1177
Charlotte Heap St Brides Media & Finance Ltd (PR) Tel: +44 (0) 20 7236 1177