Metal Tiger plc Commencement of IPO Process and Appointment of Executive Director

 
TIDMMTR 
 
 

Metal Tiger Plc

("Metal Tiger" or the "Company")

Commencement of IPO Process and Appointment of Executive Director

Metal Tiger (LON: MTR), the natural resources investing company, is pleased to announce that the Song-Toh and Boh-Yai Thai Silver-Lead-Zinc Mines Joint Venture (the "Thai Joint Venture") has formally commenced an IPO process with regard to seeking admission to trading on AIM in Q2 2017. The Company is also pleased to announce the appointment of Geoff McIntyre as a Company Executive Director with immediate effect. The incumbent Board prior to Geoff's appointment believes that his knowledge of Thailand as well as the Boh-Yai and Song-Toh project will be essential to the Company as it seeks to assist the Thai Joint Venture with its IPO process.

Michael McNeilly, Chief Executive officer of Metal Tiger commented:

"The IPO of the Thai Joint Venture is expected to realise significant value for all interested parties and shareholders and create a highly attractive company on AIM for investors to gain exposure to a near-term production silver-lead-zinc project. Having listened to the concerns of Metal Tiger shareholders and assessed Metal Tiger's business strategy with the Board, I am pleased that the Thai Joint Venture has agreed that seeking an IPO on AIM is in the best interests of all parties. I look forward to working with the Thai Joint Venture to make this IPO a success and to realising the true and currently unrecognised and not reflected value of Metal Tiger's interest in the Thai Joint Venture for Metal Tiger shareholders. I am grateful for shareholders' support of the Company and hope that they will continue to support Metal Tiger's ambitions as it evolves as a business.

I am very pleased to welcome Geoff McIntyre, a highly experienced mining executive, to the Board of Metal Tiger and look forward to working with him to deliver value to shareholders of Metal Tiger."

Thailand IPO and New Director Appointment

The Board believes that Metal Tiger's 77.9% effective interest in the Thai Joint Venture (based on current structure) is afforded only modest value within the Company's overall market cap, considering it offers the potential for near term production project with low capex, low deal cost and the primary risk to development being permitting. The Thai Joint Venture is progressing permitting via the experienced and (predominantly Thai team) in place. Updates on permitting progress will be made as and when appropriate. The following studies have already been or will be commissioned in the next month by the Thai Joint Venture:

 
 
    -- Mine Plan for permitting submission (Bara Consultants) 
 
    -- Hydrogeology Study (GWRC) 
 
    -- Environmental Plan (IEM) 
 
    -- Second Baseline Study (IEM) 
 
    -- Tailings Dam Stability Assessment (Bara Consultants) 
 
    -- Economic Study for permitting submission (5 Corners) 
 
    -- Underground Stability Assessment 
 
    -- Tailings Geochemistry 
 
    -- Underground Air Quality Survey 
 
    -- Resource Recalculation which is expected to increase the Resource 

confidence published in the 2012 NI 43-101

 
    -- Updated AIM Standard compliant Preliminary Economic Assessment report 

using Resource Calculation

Following discussions amongst the Board, brokers, advisers, and the JV partner Pornnaret Klipbua (known as "Det"), the Directors are confident that there will be parties interested in financing an IPO of the Thai Joint Venture. The Board notes that the Thai Joint Venture may consider seeking pre-IPO funding and that Metal Tiger may consider offering to underwrite a portion of the pre-IPO fundraising should it occur as well as potentially underwrite a portion of the IPO fundraise as appropriate.

The Joint Venture and Metal Tiger teams have actively assessed the cost-to-benefit-risk of an IPO and notes that there are low up-front and limited monthly costs to be paid to advisers as part of the process and to the extent possible, the majority of advisers' fees will be paid on a success basis. The Directors note that the Thai Joint Venture will need to raise a minimum of 12 months (in practice 18 months) working capital as part of the IPO and is confident that this figure will not need to include Capex requirements related to the project and therefore will comprise primarily costs associated with permitting and preparation for refurbishment of the processing plant and refurbishment and replacement of equipment amongst other costs. Metal Tiger will of course meet its funding obligations under the terms of the JVA during the IPO process which should in turn reduce the working capital requirements of the Thai Joint Venture upon admission (should this be successful).

The Directors note that a successful IPO of the Thai Joint Venture would eliminate a significant cost base within Metal Tiger which would allow the Company to deploy its capital toward financing the Joint Venture in Botswana and as appropriate toward other Direct Project investments. It is the Board of Metal Tiger's intention to issue a dividend-in-specie to Metal Tiger shareholders as part of the Thai Joint Venture's IPO.

As part of the IPO there will be a requirement to provide a competent persons report within the admission document and it is the Thai Joint Venture teams' belief and its consultants' belief that there is the potential to add a significant amount of resource to the previously completed resource statement issued in the 2012 ACA Howe NI 43-101 report. "Det" Pornnaret Klipbua the Joint Venture partner will be actively involved in the IPO process and subject to regulatory approval will be a Director of the Thai Joint Venture upon admission to trading.

Whilst the Board is highly confident in the potential for a successful IPO of the Thai Joint Venture, the Board of Metal Tiger notes that there can of course be no guarantees that an IPO of the Thai Joint Venture and the associated fundraise will be successful. Furthermore, there can be no guarantee that the IPO will complete by the end of Q2 2017. The commencement of this IPO process will in no way rule out the right of Metal Tiger to dispose of its stake in the Joint Venture should an attractive offer materialise that would in the opinion of the Board be better value for shareholders of Metal Tiger.

Metal Tiger will advise at an appropriate time on the Board composition of the Thai Joint Venture seeking admission to trading on AIM. The Board of the Thai Joint Venture, should it successfully admit to trading on AIM, will be required to adhere to appropriate corporate governance requirements and Metal Tiger accepts, as a likely substantial shareholder in the listed company, that it would need to enter into an appropriate relationship agreement as part of any admission to trading on AIM.

Director background:

Geoff is an experienced management professional and project developer having advised private and public companies on a variety of corporate transactions in the mineral development industry in Southeast Asia.

Geoff specializes on providing strategic advice for project development. Prior to his career in mining project development, he worked in start-up companies and business development. Geoff has completed a BA and MA in studies in Canada and Australia.

The following information is disclosed pursuant to Schedule Two paragraph (g) of the AIM Rules for Companies:

Mr Geoffrey Stephen McIntyre, aged 38, holds or has held the following directorships or partnerships in the past five years:

 
Current:                             Previous: 
Alpha Sourcing Co. Ltd (Hong Kong)   Metal Tiger Exploration 
Savory Holding Co. Ltd (Thailand)    Co. Ltd (Thailand) 
                                     Metal Tiger Mining Co. Ltd (Thailand) 
                                     Metal Group Co. Ltd (Thailand) 
 
 

Shareholding in the Company: 4,826,255 ordinary shares

Save as disclosed, there are no other disclosures required in relation to Rule 17 or paragraph (g) of Schedule 2 of the AIM Rules for Companies.

For further information on the Company, visit: www.metaltigerplc.com:

 
Michael McNeilly(Chief                              Tel: [phone] 
Executive Officer) 
Keith Springall (Finance                            Tel: [phone] 
Director 
& Company Secretary) 
Sean Wyndham-Quin          Spark Advisory Partners  Tel: +44 (0) 
Neil Baldwin               Limited                  2033 683 555 
                           (Nominated Adviser) 
                                                    www.sparkadvisorypartners.com 
Nick Emerson               SI Capital               Tel: [phone] 
Andy Thacker               (Joint Broker) 
Andrew Monk                VSA Capital Limited      Tel: [phone] 
Andrew Raca                (Joint Broker) 
Gordon Poole               Camarco                  Tel: [phone] 
James Crothers             (Financial PR) 
 
 

Notes to Editors:

Metal Tiger plc is listed on the London Stock Exchange AIM Market ("AIM") with the trading code MTR and invests in high potential mineral projects with a precious and strategic metals focus.

The Company's target is to deliver a very high return for shareholders by investing in significantly undervalued and/or high potential opportunities in the mineral exploration and development sector timed to coincide, where possible, with a cyclical recovery in the exploration and mining markets. The Company's key strategic objective is to ensure the distribution to shareholders of major returns achieved from disposals.

Metal Tiger's Metal Projects Division is focused on the development of its key project interests in Botswana, Spain and Thailand. In Botswana Metal Tiger has a growing interest in the large and highly prospective Kalahari copper/silver belt. In Spain Metal Tiger the Company has tungsten and gold interests in the highly mineralised Extremadura region. In Thailand Metal Tiger has expanding interests over licences, applications and critical historical data covering antimony, copper, gold, silver, lead and zinc opportunities.

The Company has access to a diverse pipeline of new opportunities focused on the natural resource sector including physical resource projects, new natural resource centred technologies and resource sector related fintech opportunities. Pipeline projects deemed commercially viable may be undertaken by Metal Tiger or by an ISDX or AIM partner with whom the Company is engaged.

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20170111005435/en/

 
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(END) Dow Jones Newswires

January 11, 2017 03:41 ET (08:41 GMT)