A newly formed company called
The French Guiana gold assets of Hope Bay Gold were excluded from the merger with
Immediately prior to the closing of the Miramar merger in May, the former shareholders of Hope Bay Gold received one distribution special warrant for every 10 Hope Bay shares held. The distribution special warrant entitled the holder to acquire one share of Ariane without further consideration. Shareholders of Ariane were subsequently granted 10 rights for each share held. Each right allowed shareholders to subscribe for a subscription receipt at a price of 70. The subscription receipt can be swapped for one common share on a 1-for-1 basis. The rights subscription was exercised by 54% of the shareholders, providing Ariane with gross proceeds of $7.4 million. When added to the $22 million raised in a special warrant issue, the company has more than sufficient funds to fulfill its payment obligations to Asarco over the next two years and carry out an aggressive exploration campaign.
Ariane has already begun reverse circulation and core drilling at Camp Caiman, targeting the oxide potential. The initial phase of exploration is budgeted at $4.2 million and will include 19,000 metres of drilling. Indicated resources, using a 0.5-gram-per-tonne cutoff, stand at 8.2 million tonnes grading 3.12 grams, equivalent to 823,000 oz. The inferred portion contains over 1 million additional oz. in 15.5 million tonnes grading 2.1 grams. Saprolite material accounts for 685,000 oz., with the remainder held in hard-rock or sulphide material. Further metallurgical testwork on the sulphide material is planned during the current round of exploration.
Ariane is now sitting with about 44 million shares outstanding.
Be the first to comment on "Ariane begins drilling in French Guiana"