Eveolution reunites McLeod-Seltzer, Lowell

A Vancouver-based capital pool company, Eveolution Ventures (EVE-V), has agreed to buy out the limited partnership of Peru Exploration Ventures and acquire all of the shares of Bear Creek Mining, a private company focused on mineral exploration in Peru.

Peru Exploration Ventures holds a position in Bear Creek, which was formed two years ago by a group of noted explorationists, including: geologist David Lowell; Andrew Swarthout, formerly vice-president exploration for Southern Peru Copper; David Volkert, formerly chief geologist with Barrick in Peru; Gerald Van Voorhis, previously vice-president exploration for Asarco; and Kevin Morano, who capped a 20-year career as president of Asarco when it was bought out by Grupo Mexico in late 1999. Each will become an office or director of Eveolution when the deal closes.

Since its inception, Bear Creek, on behalf of the limited partnership, has spent US$2 million acquiring and exploring a stable of properties, including two gold targets and four base metal prospects in southern Peru. The limited partnership of Peru Exploration Ventures consists of 14 partners holding 38 units. Twenty of the units are held by MK Gold (mkau-o).

Eveolution Ventures has agreed to acquire all the shares of Bear Creek and buy out the limited partnership for a total of 8.6 million shares at a deemed price of US50 per share. Concurrent with the closing of the acquisition, which has yet to be approved by the company’s minority shareholders, Eveolution has engaged Haywood Securities to complete a prospectus offering of 9 million units priced at US50 apiece for gross proceeds of US$4.5 million. Each unit will consist of one share and a half-warrant. One whole warrant entitles the owner to buy an additional share at US75 for one year.

Eveolution intends to change its name to Bear Creek Mining, or something similar, once the acquisition is closed, at which point the junior will have 22.3 million shares outstanding, or 28.6 million fully diluted. MK Gold is expected to hold a 21.6% stake in the resulting company.

Eveolution was trading at 30 when it was halted on April 26. An extraordinary general meeting is slated for Oct. 30.

Eveolution was formed in 1999 by four women, including Cheryl Wheeler, president, and Catherine McLeod-Seltzer, a director. McLeod- Seltzer will stay on with the newly formed company as vice-chairman and director, re-uniting with Lowell, who will serve as chairman and director of the board. The pair are noted for their contribution to the Pierina gold discovery in Peru while running Arequipa Resources, which was taken out by Barrick Gold (ABX-T) in 1996 in a combined cash-and-share deal worth more than $1.1 billion. McLeod-Seltzer and Lowell shared The Northern Miner’s 1999 Mining Man of the Year award.

Eveolution’s initial public offering was arranged through Goepel McDermid and consisted of 1 million shares at 20 apiece. Listed April 11, 2000, on the Canadian Venture Exchange, the company spent the first year searching for a “new economy” deal before the high-tech sector imploded.

The package of properties Bear Creek brings to the table includes two epithermal gold vein prospects, Lomo del Camello and Santa Rosa, as well as land positions covering prospective porphyry targets in four areas of the southern Peru coastal belt.

Field crews are currently investigating a 6-km-long quartz vein system at Lomo del Camello, which can be purchased outright for total payments of US$1.4 million over three years.

Likewise, Bear Creek can purchase a 100% interest in the Santa Rosa gold prospect for US$900,000 spread over four years.

Bear Creek has a drill target ready at the Ataspaca copper porphyry prospect, on the Chilean border, and can earn a half-interest by completing two 150-metre holes at a cost of US$50,000. The target is a sizable multi-element anomaly coincident with hydrothermal alteration characteristic of a high-level porphyry system.