ACA.L Regulatory News (ACA)

ACACIA MINING PLC - Statement re announcement from Barrick

PR Newswire

London, June 19

NOT FOR RELEASE, PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION IN WHOLE OR IN PART IN, INTO OR FROM ANY JURISDICTION WHERE TO DO SO WOULD CONSTITUTE A VIOLATION OF THE RELEVANT LAWS OR REGULATIONS OF SUCH JURISDICTION

THIS ANNOUNCEMENT IS NOT AN ANNOUNCEMENT OF A FIRM INTENTION TO MAKE AN OFFER UNDER RULE 2.7 OF THE CITY CODE ON TAKEOVERS AND MERGERS (THE "CODE") AND THERE CAN BE NO CERTAINTY THAT AN OFFER WILL BE MADE

THIS ANNOUNCEMENT CONTAINS INSIDE INFORMATION

19 June 2019

Acacia Mining plc

LSE:ACA

STATEMENT REGARDING ANNOUNCEMENT FROM BARRICK

Acacia Mining plc (“Acacia” or “the Company”) notes the announcement from Barrick Gold Corporation (“Barrick”) yesterday regarding their views on the situation in Tanzania and Acacia’s mine plans (“the Announcement”).

The Company strongly disagrees with a number of statements made in the Announcement. The Company is also surprised with the circumstances and timing of the Announcement, which immediately followed earlier announcements regarding Acacia’s agreement to Barrick’s request for an extension to the PUSU Deadline. The Company will provide a detailed response to the relevant aspects of the announcement, as appropriate, in due course.

Shareholders are strongly urged to take no action at this time.

In accordance with Rule 2.6(a) of the Code, Barrick is required, by not later than 5.00pm on 9 July 2019, either to announce a firm intention to make an offer in accordance with Rule 2.7 of the Code or to announce that they do not intend to make an offer, in which case the announcement will be treated as a statement to which Rule 2.8 of the Code applies. This deadline may be extended with the consent of the Takeover Panel in accordance with Rule 2.6(c) of the Code.

Terms not defined herein have the meaning as set out in the Company’s announcement dated 18 June 2019.

ENQUIRIES

For further information, please visit our website: www.acaciamining.com or contact.

Acacia Mining plc +44 (0) 20 7129 7150

Sally Marshak, Head of Investor Relations and Communications +44 (0) 752 580 7953

Camarco +44 (0) 20 3757 4980

Gordon Poole / Nick Hennis

J.P. Morgan Cazenove (Joint Lead Financial Adviser and Broker): +44 (0) 20 7742 4000

Barry Weir

James Robinson

Dimitri Reading-Picopoulos

RBC Capital Markets (Joint Lead Financial Adviser and Broker): +44 (0) 20 7653 4000

Kevin Smith

Paul Betts

Vicky Liu

Lazard & Co., Limited (Financial Adviser to the Transaction Committee of Acacia Mining plc):

Spiro Youakim +44 (0) 20 7187 2000

William Lawes

Gustavo Plenge

Further Information:

J.P. Morgan Limited, which conducts its UK investment banking business as J.P. Morgan Cazenove ("J.P. Morgan Cazenove"), is authorised and regulated in the United Kingdom by the Financial Conduct Authority. J.P. Morgan Cazenove is acting as financial adviser exclusively for Acacia and no one else in connection with the matters set out in this announcement and will not regard any other person as its client in relation to the matters in this announcement and will not be responsible to anyone other than Acacia for providing the protections afforded to clients of J.P. Morgan Cazenove, nor for providing advice in relation to any matter referred to herein.

RBC Europe Limited (trading as RBC Capital Markets), which is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority in the United Kingdom, is acting for Acacia and no one else in connection with the matters referred to in this announcement and will not be responsible to anyone other than Acacia for providing the protections afforded to clients of RBC Capital Markets, or for providing advice in connection with the matters referred to in this announcement.

Lazard & Co., Limited (“Lazard”), which is authorised and regulated in the United Kingdom by the Financial Conduct Authority, is acting exclusively for the Transaction Committee of Acacia Mining plc and for no one else in connection with the matters set out in this announcement and will not be responsible to anyone other than the Transaction Committee of Acacia Mining plc for providing the protections afforded to clients of Lazard nor for providing advice in relation to the matters referred to in this announcement. Neither Lazard nor any of its affiliates owes or accepts any duty, liability or responsibility whatsoever (whether direct or indirect, whether in contract, in tort, under statute or otherwise) to any person who is not a client of Lazard in connection with this announcement, any statement contained herein or otherwise.

About ACACIA

Acacia Mining plc (LSE:ACA) is the UK holding company of the Acacia Group, Tanzania’s largest gold miner and one of the largest producers of gold in Africa. The Acacia Group has three mines, all located in north-west Tanzania: Bulyanhulu, which is owned and operated by Bulyanhulu Gold Mine Limited, Buzwagi, which is owned and operated by Pangea Minerals Limited and North Mara, which is owned and operated by North Mara Gold Mine Limited. The Acacia Group also has a portfolio of exploration projects in Kenya, Burkina Faso and Mali. Acacia Mining plc is a UK public company headquartered in London. It is listed on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange with a secondary listing on the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange. Barrick Gold Corporation is the majority shareholder of Acacia Mining plc.

Disclaimer and forward-looking statements

This announcement is for information purposes only and does not constitute an invitation or offer to underwrite, subscribe for or otherwise acquire or dispose of any securities of Acacia in any jurisdiction. This announcement includes “forward-looking statements” that express or imply expectations of future events or results as opposed to historical facts. These statements include, financial projections and estimates and their underlying assumptions, statements regarding plans, objectives and expectations with respect to future production, operations, costs, projects, and statements regarding future performance. Forward-looking statements are generally identified by the words “plans,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “believes,” “intends,” “estimates” and other similar expressions. All forward-looking statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties and other factors, many of which are beyond the control of Acacia, which could cause actual results and developments to differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, the forward-looking statements contained herein. Factors that could cause or contribute to differences between the actual results, performance and achievements of Acacia include, but are not limited to, changes or developments in political, economic or business conditions or national or local legislation or regulation in countries in which Acacia conducts - or may in the future conduct - business, industry trends, competition, fluctuations in the spot and forward price of gold or certain other commodity prices (such as copper and diesel), currency fluctuations (including the US dollar, South African rand, Kenyan shilling and Tanzanian shilling exchange rates), Acacia’s ability to successfully integrate acquisitions, Acacia’s ability to recover its reserves or develop new reserves, including its ability to convert its resources into reserves and its mineral potential into resources or reserves, and to process its mineral reserves successfully and in a timely manner, Acacia’s ability to complete land acquisitions required to support its mining activities, operational or technical difficulties which may occur in the context of mining activities, delays and technical challenges associated with the completion of projects, risk of trespass, theft and vandalism, changes in Acacia’s business strategy and ongoing implementation of operational reviews, as well as risks and hazards associated with the business of mineral exploration, development, mining and production and risks and factors affecting the gold mining industry in general. Although Acacia’s management believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, Acacia cannot give assurances that such statements will prove to be correct. Accordingly, investors should not place reliance on forward-looking statements contained in this announcement. Any forward-looking statements in this announcement only reflect information available at the time of preparation. Save as required under the Market Abuse Regulation or otherwise as may be required under applicable law, Acacia explicitly disclaims any obligation or undertaking publicly to update or revise any forward-looking statements in this announcement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Nothing in this announcement should be construed as a profit forecast or estimate and no statement made should be interpreted to mean that Acacia’s profits or earnings per share for any future period will necessarily match or exceed its historical published profits or earnings per share.