Metal Tiger PLC Kingsgate Shareholder Meeting

Metal Tiger PLC (LON:MTR), has today announced that Kingsgate Consolidated Limited (Kingsgate) has confirmed Kingsgate shareholders will be given an opportunity to elect a new board at a meeting in Sydney on 9 January 2018.

The meeting will enable Kingsgate shareholders to support five new directors who have a clear vision for the company after years of poor performance and a massive destruction of shareholder value.

Metal Tiger, Kingsgate’s largest shareholder with a 6.7 per cent interest, requested the Kingsgate shareholder meeting to remove all but one member of the board, and proposed that five new directors be appointed, including three directors of Metal Tiger.

Metal Tiger encourages its fellow Kingsgate shareholders to vote in favour of all resolutions, which will result in a new, highly capable Kingsgate board that is committed and capable of restoring shareholder value, unlike the existing Kingsgate board.

Kingsgate has also issued an Explanatory Memorandum, which Metal Tiger Chief Executive Officer Michael McNeilly described as a defensive and misleading document that reinforces the fact that Kingsgate’s future rests on the outcome of costly, high risk legal proceedings. Metal Tiger will provide a detailed response to the Explanatory Memorandum shortly.

 

“We encourage shareholders to vote in favour of all resolutions to appoint a new board at Kingsgate,” Mr McNeilly said. “We believe the proposed directors have the experience, expertise and relationships that can lead to the reopening of the Chatree Gold Mine, Kingsgate’s only operating asset, and restore value.” 

 

Metal Tiger acknowledges Kingsgate successfully mined the higher-grade gold at Chatree to increase revenue and repay debt after its metallurgical licence was renewed for only six months. However, it is regrettable the situation in Thailand deteriorated to that point. No doubt many Kingsgate shareholders have long been hopeful of a resolution in Thailand.

 

Deep understanding of Thailand and issues surrounding Chatree

Metal Tiger has a deep understanding of the issues surrounding Chatree, contrary to what the Kingsgate Board has implied. Metal Tiger has carefully assessed the asset and stakeholders, and has developed a strong understanding of the mine’s history and potential issues.

Metal Tiger made its sizeable investment in Kingsgate on the basis that there is tremendous value at Chatree, including significant exploration upside. Metal Tiger has carefully considered the new Minerals Act, the draft Mineral Royalty Act, the draft Mineral Management Master Plan, the new Gold Policy and its impacts, licence status (the limitations created by the pending renewal of ML 25528/14714 at Pit-A), litigation status – both locally and in Bangkok – community issues, environmental concerns, appropriate Thai ownership concerns, and many other factors. Metal Tiger spoke with Kingsgate Executive Chairman Ross Smyth-Kirk before Kingsgate launched arbitration proceedings against the Kingdom of Thailand to obtain his views on the company’s prospects and took these into consideration before taking action against the Kingsgate Board.

Metal Tiger completed detailed technical and commercial due diligence on Chatree for an extended period of time, including in-country activities, and based on conservative assumptions the findings confirmed the reopening of Chatree to be a compelling proposition.

The simple fact is the reopening of Chatree, despite the cost and challenges involved, is a more valuable proposition to Kingsgate than the pursuit of expensive, potentially lengthy arbitration proceedings where success is uncertain.

Going down the path of arbitration is an understandable last resort if relationships are irreparably damaged and negotiations are unable to proceed. However, while the current Kingsgate management and ownership structure remains in place, Metal Tiger does not believe this tactic will deliver a result that satisfies both the Thailand Government and Kingsgate.

 

Kingsgate funding concerns

Based on Metal Tiger’s research and analysis of similar claims, Kingsgate is going to need substantially more capital to finance its current strategy unless the Company is successful in obtaining a settlement from Zurich. However, Kingsgate has previously acknowledged there is no guaranteed outcome and that they are “hoping” for a result in June/July of next year.

Quite simply, Kingsgate is rapidly burning through cash and has no clear long-term funding strategy in place to pursue its litigation strategy should things not work out as hoped or expected, which they rarely do.

Worryingly, Kingsgate has not made shareholders aware of the amount they believe is owed to them as possible compensation should an award be made in arbitration. Numerous media reports have suggested large sums but neither Kingsgate nor the Thailand Government have publicly confirmed these figures.

 

Support a new Kingsgate Board

“We believe Chatree can be restarted, subject to a new line of approach with the Thailand Government and subject to appropriate restructuring, and we are aware of interest from investors in Europe, North America, Asia and the Middle East to help finance the restart,” Mr McNeilly said. “But it is our view that such a strategy can only be implemented under a new Board given the bridges that have been burned by Kingsgate’s incumbent directors. This is not about Metal Tiger gaining control of Kingsgate, this about change for the benefit of all shareholders.”

Metal Tiger encourages Kingsgate shareholders to support all resolutions and install a Board that can reopen Chatree and restore much-needed value at Kingsgate.

Click to view all articles for the EPIC:
Or click to view the full company profile:
    Facebook
    Twitter
    LinkedIn
    Metal Tiger Plc

    More articles like this

    Metal Tiger Plc

    Top banks say gold may see a record rally by 2021

    Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan, and Goldman Sachs all foresee the gold price rallying by 2021. According to a research paper from Bloomberg, the precious metal’s uptrend can fuel a Bitcoin upsurge. Top financial institutions in the U.S. attribute

    Metal Tiger Plc

    Copper’s fifth weekly gain

    Copper prices were heading for a fifth consecutive weekly gain on Friday as inventories declined and stock markets rose while demand improved in top consumer China. Investors are increasingly optimistic about an economic rebound, with the

    Metal Tiger Plc

    Copper secures fourth consecutive weekly rise

    Copper futures’ prices rose on Friday and had coffered their fourth consecutive weekly percentage gain as a significant scale of decline in inventories has been pointing towards a turnaround in demands, while traders across the globe were

    Metal Tiger Plc

    Cooper jumps to 20-week high

    Shanghai copper jumped on Wednesday to its highest level in nearly 20 weeks, recouping almost all of its losses caused by the COVID-19 pandemic on strong demand in China and low stocks. The most-traded July copper

    Metal Tiger Plc

    Copper gains on Trump’s mild Hong Kong response

    Copper prices rose on Monday on solid manufacturing data from China and a milder-than-expected response by the U.S. President Donald Trump on China’s security legislation for Hong Kong. Trump on Friday ordered the process of eliminating

    Metal Tiger Plc

    Metal Tiger Critical turning point for the Company

    Metal Tiger plc (LON:MTR), the London Stock Exchange AIM listed investor in natural resource opportunities, has this morning announced its audited results for the year ended 31 December 2019. Highlights: Sale of the Group’s 30% interest in

    Metal Tiger Plc

    Preparing for more EVs

    In its 2019 EV Outlook, Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF) gives an overview of where things stand and where they are heading in the electric vehicle (EV) market, both in Europe and globally. The report predicts that

    Metal Tiger Plc

    Metal Tiger invest in Trident Resources

    Metal Tiger plc (AIM:MTR), the London Stock Exchange AIM listed investor in natural resource opportunities, has today announced that it has conditionally subscribed for 2,850,000 new ordinary shares of 1 pence each in Trident Resources PLC

    Metal Tiger Plc

    Metal Tiger complete further financing arrangement

    Metal Tiger plc (LON:MTR), the London Stock Exchange AIM listed investor in natural resource opportunities, has today announced that, further to the Company’s announcement of 17 December 2019, it has entered into a further equity derivative

    Metal Tiger Plc

    Copper rises on demand hopes

    Copper prices climbed on Monday as the reopening of economies paralyzed by the coronavirus crisis boosted hopes of a revival in demand for metals. Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange (LME) rose 1% to $5,234.50