KGLD.L Share News (KGLD)

Shares in Kolar Gold jumped after it emerged the Indian Government is set to go ahead with the long-awaited tender sale of the Bharat Gold Mines at the Kolar Gold Fields. The company was set up in the late 1990s to secure and revive these mines in a joint venture with the local workforce and community. It said: "Tendering for these assets was and has remained a key objective of the company since its shares were admitted to AIM in June 2011."The Supreme Court of India has instructed the Indian government to proceed with the tender sale, according to news reports. Kolar Gold said it expected the written order from the court would be published tomorrow.The tender document will then be finalised and offers will be invited from gold mining companies.Chief Executive Nick Spencer said: "This long awaited BGML mine sale tender and revival is an enormous step and huge opportunity for the Kolar community and, if successful, Kolar Gold to re-start operations on one of the world's great gold belts and create significant employment and economic development in an area of poverty, ill health and unemployment. "We are very close to this community and ex-workforce and have been working closely with them to bring prosperity to the area."The Kolar Gold Fields, closed in 2001, produced 25m ounces of gold at 15.9 grammes a tonne over their 120 years of operation, Kolar Gold said. Shares in Kolar Gold were up 15% to 4.88p at 09:53 on Thursday. TB