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STORY CONTINUES BELOW THESE SALTWIRE VIDEOS
ST. LAWRENCE, N.L. — The deal is finally done.
The fluorspar mine at St. Lawrence, on Newfoundland and Labrador’s Burin Peninsula, is now in new hands.
Fluorspar Holdings Ptd. Ltd, a subsidiary of South African-based firm AMED Funds, has bought the mine for $25 million.
Some of the details were announced at noon Tuesday, June 13, at a news conference in the town of St. Lawrence.
It was a chance for local people to meet one of the men behind AMED, Rudolph de Burin, who is a director of Fluorspar Holdings.
He confirmed that the mine will go back into operation.
In a news release late Monday, June 12, he said the mine at St. Lawrence produces acidspar-grade fluorspar, which is a key material used in the production process of lithium batteries, solar panels and steel.
“These are products that society is heavily reliant on, and that reliance is only projected to increase,” he said, adding, “AMED is looking forward to re-opening the mine and establishing its business operations with its eyes set on sustainable long-term profitability and a net positive benefit to the region and the local community in the short and long term.
“Our aim is not only to bring Canada Fluorspar back into production, but to transform it into a world-class fluorspar mine as part of AMED’s diverse product offering. We aim to do this in partnership with the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador and the community,” he said today at St. Lawrence.
The province, as a secured creditor, will get $4 million from the proceeds of the sale, repaying a loan of $3.25 million, plus interest, that it provided to Canada Fluorspar Inc. (CFI) to maintain the mine property during the hunt for a new buyer.
It now intends to spend nearly that much again to help the new buyer.
Industry minister Andrew Parsons said the province has agreed to provide up to “but not more than” $3.785 million towards the cost of a water treatment plan to assist with the restart of the mine.
According to the government news release, that project is expected to cost in the tens-of-millions of dollars.
Wondering
St. Lawrence Mayor Kevin Pittman told SaltWire Tuesday morning the news is a bit of a relief.
It brings an end to months of wondering.
With that process now concluded, he said, the town hopes to meet with the new owners soon to talk about things like a tax agreement for the municipal government.
First things first, though, he said.
What is most important right now, he said, is seeing people get back to work.
For a community, though, that’s weathered the ups and downs of fluorspar mining for many decades, Pittman said it’s not been an easy history.
“We’ve had these ups and downs now four times since Alcan (in 1978) and we’ll never get used to that.”
Today officials were more interested in looking to the future.
Paul Pike, former mayor who is now the MHA for Burin-Grand Bank, summed it up by saying, “This is a good day for the entire region, providing employment, creating a stable local economy, and benefitting all Newfoundlanders and Labradorians.”
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About AMED
AMED — African Minerals Exploration and Development — Funds, the parent company of Fluorspar Holdings, is a group of private equity funds with a focus on mining and exploration projects, focused on development of Tier 1 mineral projects in Africa.
According to a news release from Canada Newswire AMED has over $1.4 billion (U.S.) in assets under management, including a “significant investment” in a South Afridan-based fluorspar operation and other fluorspar projects.
The company said it has “a successful track record over the last decade identifying, purchasing and operating diverse mining projects.”
According to his LinkedIn profile, Rudolph de Bruin holds degrees in commerce and law, and practiced in commercial law in South Africa.
He left the Bar in 1989 for the mineral industry, focused on “finding, acquiring and developing mineral exploration and mining projects in various African countries.”
He and his business partner, geologist David Twist, were the founder members of Coronation International Mining in the late 1990’s, which discovered and explored the Essakane gold deposit in Burkina Faso. Essakane became one of the most profitable gold mines in West Africa.
He and Twist also founded Platmin Group in the early 2000’s, which found platinum deposits in the Bushveld Complex in South Africa and developed a platinum mine.
They were also the founder members of the Sephaku Group in 2004. Sephaku acquired the rights to a limestone deposit, which they explored and subsequently developed into a cement producing plant under the name Sephaku Cement.
The two men, joined by a third partner Carlo Baravalle, co-founded AMED Funds in 2011, raising $475 million U.S. and investing in 13 mineral and development projects, mainly in African companies.
The Advisors
The deal also involved Clariti Strategic AdvisorsTM, an investment banking and strategic advisory firm based in Toronto.
Willem Jacobs, Senior Managing Director and Head of Energy and Mining Investment Banking at Clariti, said in a news release, “Canada Fluorspar will now become a very important part of AMED’s fluorspar businesses and its global industrial minerals product offering.
“The operation will benefit from AMED’s fluorspar technical knowledge and its sales and distribution network, which in turn will bring significant benefits to the province and the local community.”
Rahul Suri is founder and managing partner of Clariti.
He said the process to reach the final deal was a complex transaction.
The closing followed many months of review, analysis, negotiations and discussions with several stakeholders, including the senior lenders to Canada Fluorspar, the DIP lenders, Grant Thornton (as court-appointed Monitor) and the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador, said Suri.
“The parties had to maintain and balance all stakeholders’ interests in an effort to develop a positive outcome overall,” he said, adding, “We understand from the Monitor’s filings with the court that the AMED proposal was materially the best proposal received, and we wish to thank all parties and their representatives for their diligent and very constructive work to help bring this transaction across the finish line.”
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