Member Info for Jiving

I am hoping that if they are prepared to part with part/all of DX to secure the financing for Kola, that we will finally get this over the line.

I am also hoping for good results for NXP002 but we have the looming issue of finance - where is the money going to come from once Lanstead finishes? Not a great market for AIM placings at present.

Management comment suggests it was a local business dispute rather than a China/Govt issue:
"In October, the company announced that two of its employees had been arrested in the Republic of Congo (RoC), where the company is developing the Kola potash project. “Without going into the grisly details, we had a business relationship with a local Congolese businessperson who thought it might be a good idea to do this,” says Kore CEO Brad Sampson..."
https://www.businesslive.co.za/fm/money-and-investing/2023-02-02-kore-potash-less-manure-more-green-shoots/

At present its lasting a bit longer than the regular P&D.

A couple of years ago a group of investors apparently had an online Q&A with AT & he was asked whether it was feasible for production to be raised to 60mtpa. He replied it was - presumably with commensurate increase in infrastructure etc. I was not a party to that exchange, but heard a summary from a reliable friend.

99, its not my assumption or my view - its what has actually happened. Under Glasenberg there was no progress, under Nagle we have a serious positive change. I am interested you deem to know how a potential future takeover might take place, realistically we have no clue how the equity/offtake play will happen. As a ZIOC shareholder I simply want 'something' to happen, which it has not so far.

Thank you for the link, it sets out the Glasenberg position on ZIOC exactly - essentially Glencore are a seller rather than a developer:
"...chief financial officer Steven Kalmin. "For us, it’s largely option value," Kalmin said. "At some point in a high iron-ore price, if someone offered us a nice price, for those we’re probably more of a seller than a developer,"

99, its an interesting point the extent to which short term fluctuations in a commodity price affect investment in long term, 30+ year projects - miners 'mine'. Glasenberg was not shy that he was a trader+ not a miner - hence the big fallout with Mick Davis. He didnt do greenfield developments like Zanaga, essentially come what may. In one interview (I think with the FT?) he actually specifically referred to stakes like ZIOC as being 'options', for Glencore.

The Nagle changeover has resulted in a critically important change to the JV structure, being promoted as opening up equity owning opportunities to a third party interested in developing the mine. Glasenberg had the stake for some 8 years & for whatever reason (s) nothing happened, Nagle has been in situ for less than 2 years & we have movement.

99, we had many years before the coup in Guinea & Covid when nothing happened, primarily due to Glasenberg's 'no greenfield' policy. Glencore completed its takeover of Xstrata (& therefore its Zanaga controlling stake) in May 2013. The coup in Guinea was September 2021 & Covid got serious from say March 2020 - so they spent some 7 years not getting to this point.

Getting to this point (ie the change in the JV status of late 2022) came with the change at the top of Glencore & Nagle's policy on their share stakes - which seems to be 'sell or use'. We appear to fall into the latter category.

I sense we have gone from being an 'option' with Glasenberg to be an 'opportunity' with Nagle.

ATG & others, the Saudi possibility suddenly seems increasingly viable. I could imagine African countries viewing an alternative to 'China everything' as a big positive. A new mining fund that targets iron ore among others, a new Embassy, plus talk of becoming a steel hub needing high quality iron ore - there cant be that many sizeable assets suitable for the Saudis?

99, our posts crossed, actually I hope Glencore do want to straight sell the project at something around npv - great. But at the moment we are all in the dark as to their intentions, which may themselves be changing if interested parties reveal themselves .

99, appreciate those calculations, but what does that mean, given current ore prices would a 450+ truck fleet be viable (hence the $200m figure mentioned)? If not does Forrest have something else in mind - there has to be something to it, its an official announcement with a follow-up detailed on the record interview.

99, Glencore has always been interested in big deals but historically not in greenfield mining development. We dont know what their approach is in the circumstances of this restructuring.

ATG, btw the whole point of my post was comparing a small deal (ie EPP circa 2m) vs a 'big deal' at 12m. We have no idea which way they are going, but at least something is happening & we are 'in play'.

ATG, we have been waiting a big deal for too long, but nobody has been prepared to step up & do it (at leats with the old JV structure). The whole EPP scenario is essentially better than nothing, & presumably could lead to the 'big deal' once we can prove a working iron ore mine is possible in ROC. Of course like presumably 'all' investors, I am hoping for the 12m pa scenario or a buyout, but we need to get something going & that in turn could lead to bigger better things. Whatever the restructuring & the positive RNSs mean we are in play.

99, I had similar hopes but we dont know the terms of the offtake, & what level of potential production is could potentially spur - 2m or 12m? I am cautious but the restructuring clearly was intended to get something going, maybe it has finally got other interested parties to show their hand?

Thats good to know about Belinga, 99. But I think Forrest's rationale also vindicates the viability of Zanaga undertaking an EPP at around the same level of 2m using existing infrastructure - just to kickstart our prospects. Obviously I 'hope' we start with bigger plans but an EPP is way better than just drifting, or losing our license.

Mitch I remember that clarification coming through. re Glencore & it was significant. I also thought the original acquisition announcement signalled an EPP style deal was likely, & was expecting more details to emerge to that effect. However, I now wonder whether the Chinese interest in accessing/owning non Australian iron ore (ie Simandou) may make them review Zanaga again, especially now a direct equity interest is possible. The Glencore offtake deal is a complicating factor, but if Glencore need to get a deal away presumably everything is negotiable. I now feel EPP is still most likely but there is a reasonable chance something grander might emerge.

Agree completely MM, Glencore have altered the JV structure to bring the mine finally to fruition. The company in its investor presentation of 7 December 2022 in its review of their portfolio noted "Zanaga Iron Ore - sale pending'. Glad to have you back on board, as I know you have extensive historical knowledge of the company from well before many of us invested.

Sure agree completely Extrader, but Pro is frankly too amateur to be part of a serious P&D gang. Sadly, hopefully one day we will attract better quality de-rampers.

He is such a 'Pro' he has been posting in the wrong ZIOC forum - the one for 'ZIOC.GB.PL'. Which nobody posts in or even visits, except the 'Pro': https://www.lse.co.uk/ShareChat.asp?ShareTicker=ZIOC.GB.PL&share=Zanaga-Iron-Ore-Company-Limited

"Wall Street analysts" - for ZIOC - perhaps its a parody account? Just after 'Pro' first posted in mid January some large orders came through on successive days.

FT 11.01.23 - note targets include iron ore:
"Saudi Arabia has launched a mining fund that plans to invest up to $15bn of capital in overseas assets according to people familiar with the details, as the country works to reduce its dependence on fossil fuels. The venture, 51 per cent owned by Saudi state-owned miner Ma’aden, with the remainder owned by the country’s Public Investment Fund, will take non-operating minority stakes in mining projects internationally, the two companies said on Wednesday. That will help Saudi Arabia, which is the world’s second-largest oil producer, to secure resources such as iron ore, copper, nickel and lithium for domestic mineral processing and other industrial activities like steelmaking."