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LONDON (Alliance News) - Bezant Resources PLC on Wednesday posted a narrowed loss for 2018 due to a reduction in operating expenses.
Copper-gold exploration and development firm Bezant reported a GBP846,000 pretax loss, narrowed from a GBP1.0 million loss in 2017.
This was a consequence of lower operating expenses, which shrank to GBP656,000 from GBP968,000 the year before.
The company exited from its alluvial gold-platinum operation in Columbia in April 2018 and its focus in the year was on ensuring a smooth departure without liability.
Analysis and interpretation of Bezant's Mankayan project in the Philippines took place in 2018, resulting in an updated block cave model. A new independent mining study was commissioned in November 2018 and completed February 2019.
The tax environment for miners in the Philippines has been uncertain, although this has improved since provisions were made by Bezant in 2016, 2017, and the first half of 2018. These provisions remain in place, although none of the new funds advanced in the second half of 2018 for the Mankayan project have been impaired.
In Argentina, the company has been working to finalise environmental impact assessment approvals for its Eureka project, and expects these approvals will be "completed in the second quarter of 2019". The approvals are to "provide for a two-year exploration period" including 2,000 metres of diamond drilling.
Last moth, Bezant announced it has signed an option to potentially acquire a 50% interest in the Buffalo exploration project in Zambia.
Bezant CEO Laurence Read said: "Bezant has completed important work on the Mankayan project over the reporting period and during the year to date, resulting in a new, optimised economic study, by an internationally recognised consulting group. This study demonstrates the potential for a major block caving development or an alternate 'stepping stone' route to production, with reduced capex, utilising sub level caving. The taxation situation to normalise the mining regime in the Philippines is still ongoing and we continue to monitor the situation as we look at development pathways going forward.
"In Argentina, we are actively pursuing [joint venture] opportunities with groups active in South America which have a particular focus on gold, which Bezant believes represents the most likely way for the company to obtain value from the Eureka project. The recently agreed Buffalo project option provides an exciting addition to the Bezant portfolio and fits our objective to secure projects with pre-existing data that can be meaningfully progressed in value by a company such as Bezant. "
Shares in Bezant were up 1.2% at 0.086 pence on Wednesday.
