Last checked at 20 Oct 2010 07:00
BISICHI MINING PLC Vunani Mining (Pty) Limited purchases 37.5% shareholding of Black Wattle Colliery (Pty) Limited
Bisichi Mining PLC ("Bisichi"), the UK mining company with direct coal mining operations in South Africa, is pleased to announce that Vunani Mining (Pty) Limited ("Vunani Mining"), has concluded the purchase of a 37.5% shareholding in Black Wattle Colliery (Pty) Limited ("Black Wattle"), Bisichi's operation in Middelburg, South Africa.
The transaction has been entered into via a share subscription and shareholders agreement, the details of which are as follows:
* Black Wattle's total issued share capital has been increased from 136 shares to 1000 shares at par of SA Rand 1 through the following shares issue: * + a subscription for 489 ordinary shares by Bisichi at par increasing Bisichi's shareholding from 136 ordinary shares to a total of 675 ordinary shares; + a subscription for 110 ordinary shares by Vunani at par; + a subscription for 265 "A" shares by Vunani at par * The "A" shares will rank pari passu with the ordinary shares save that they will have no dividend rights until such time as the dividends paid by Black Wattle on the ordinary shares subsequent to 30 October 2008 will equate to SA Rand 832,075,000
Commenting on the transaction, Ethan Dube, Chief Executive Officer of Vunani, said:
"We are very excited about this coal mining investment. It provides a platform from which to build both organically and by acquisition our interests in the coal mining sector. Black Wattle is a leading independent opencast colliery in South Africa with access to both the export and domestic markets."
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Announcing the acquisition of the minority stake, Andrew Heller, Managing Director, Bisichi Mining PLC said:
"Vunani is a leading, publicly-listed, black-owned and managed company and we are very pleased that they have joined us as a partner in Black Wattle. We are proud of our longstanding commitment to Black Economic Empowerment in South Africa and we see this transaction with Vunani as the first of many we will do together in South Africa."
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For further information please call:
Andrew Heller or Garrett Casey, Bisichi Mining PLC 020 7415 5030
Notes to Editors:
1. Vunani Mining
Vunani Limited is a black owned and managed financial services company that operates through two divisions: Financial Services and Investment Services. Financial Services is composed of the fund management, investment banking and property business units. Investment Services houses Vunani's strategic empowerment equity investments, including its mining investments in Wesizwe Platinum and Black Wattle Colliery.
2. Black Wattle, Bisichi's direct coal mining operation in South Africa is located in Middelburg, Mpumalanga and produces high quality export steam coal, low phosphorous metallurgical coal, and Eskom coal from its opencast operations. Bisichi became involved in Black Wattle in 1994. In 1999, Black Wattle became one of the first Black Economic Empowered mines in South Africa.
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