Gemstone producer and developer Richland Resources
on Tuesday said its subsidiary TanzaniteOne Mining and Tanzanian State-owned
mining arm Stamico have signed a letter of intent setting out the terms of a
new mining licence for the Aim-listed group’s Tanzania-based tanzanite
deposits.
The parties aimed to enter into a formal binding
agreement cementing the terms of how the operations would be undertaken, as
well as the division of costs and revenue, under the 50:50 mining licence,
which was expected to be issued during the next few days.
“We are pleased to have reached mutually acceptable
terms in principle for a partnership with the government of Tanzania that
recognises the company's investment under its former licence in full compliance
with the local participation requirement of the 2010 Mining Act and provides a
commercially acceptable framework for the continuation of its mining operations
in Tanzania,” Richland CEO Bernard Olivier said in a statement.
The parties were in the process of determining a
“fair and reasonable sum” to be paid by Stamico – either in full or using 40 per cent of the yearly profit due to it from the mining of tanzanite – to TanzaniteOne
in exchange for a 50 per cent stake in the new mining licence.
Under the agreed terms, neither TanzaniteOne nor
Stamico could sell the shareholding without permission or right-of-first
refusal.
Olivier pointed out that all revenue and profits
earned from activities other than mining by TanzaniteOne were excluded from the
profit sharing arrangements, and that all current assets, including buildings,
machinery and plant and equipment, remained under the ownership of
TanzaniteOne.
Stamico would further facilitate and liaise with
the local government authorities to ensure that necessary regulatory and law
enforcement actions are taken efficiently as the two companies work to curb
tanzanite smuggling and illegal mining operations in the area.
Source: international wire services
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