Fortune Minerals Retains Deloitte to Secure Strategic Partner(s) and Financing for Projects
Issued Capital: 111,030,661
LONDON, ON, Nov. 3, 2011 /CNW/ - Fortune Minerals Limited (TSX-FT) ('Fortune' or the 'Company') announced today that it has engaged Deloitte & Touche Corporate Finance Canada Inc. ('Deloitte') to act as Fortune's financial advisor in pursuing strategic alternatives for the advancement of both the Company's flagship projects, the Mount Klappan Metallurgical Coal project in northwest British Columbia ('BC') and the NICO Gold-Cobalt-Bismuth-Copper project in the Northwest Territories ('NT'), Canada. Deloitte will assist Fortune in identifying potential financing partners and evaluating potential transactions that would provide funding for the development, construction and successful commercial production of both assets.
Fortune President Robin Goad stated 'we are very pleased to be working with Deloitte again on this important corporate finance advisory mandate. Deloitte's work as our financial advisor in securing POSCO as a partner for the Mount Klappan Project demonstrated they have a leading global M&A capability focused on the mining sector. Their strong presence in critical Asian markets is especially important as Fortune looks to further advance its projects.'
Jeremy South, Deloitte's Global Mining M&A Leader commented 'Our team of Mining M&A professionals in Canada and Asia will work closely with Fortune's management team to deliver its goal of securing the funding required to advance the NICO and Mount Klappan projects to production. We look forward to leveraging our global reach and expertise to assist Fortune.'
Mount Klappan Metallurgical Coal Project
Mount Klappan is one of the world's premier metallurgical coal deposits, consisting of 15,866 hectares of coal exploration licenses in northwest BC and is located 330 km northeast of the port of Prince Rupert. The licenses straddle the BC Railway right-of-way and its partially constructed roadbed, 150 km north of the current terminus of track at Minaret where CN is operating under a long-term lease. Mount Klappan is in the environmental assessment process for the upgrade and expansion of the railway infrastructure and for the development of an open pit mine and wash plant that is expected to produce an initial 3 million tonnes per annum of premium ultra-low volatile pulverized coal injection ('PCI') products for the overseas steel industry. Fortune (80%) and POSCO Canada Ltd. ('POSCAN') (20%) are the current joint venture partners of the project (See Fortune News Release, dated July 13, 2011). POSCAN is the Canadian subsidiary of South Korea's POSCO, one of the largest steel producers in the world, and has investments in other North American coal companies and mineral development projects.
NICO Cobalt-Gold-Bismuth Project
The NICO Project is located 160 km northwest of the City of Yellowknife, NT and 50 km north of the Tlicho community of Whati. The 31 million tonne deposit will be developed using a combination of open pit and underground mining methods with ores projected to be processed at the rate of 4,650 tonnes per day in a mill at the site over an 18-year mine life. Other facilities that are planned at the site include a camp to accommodate employees working on a rotation basis, ancillary buildings and a 27 km all-season access road that will join the site to the proposed Tlicho Road connecting nearby communities with the highway to Yellowknife. The mill is expected to produce approximately 180 tonnes of bulk concentrate per day for shipment south to the Company's proposed hydrometallurgical refinery near Saskatoon and further processing. Fortune plans to be a significant, reliable North American-based supplier of high purity cobalt cathode, bismuth ingot, gold doré, and by-product copper cathode and nickel precipitates.
About Deloitte:
Deloitte's Global Mining Advisory Group offers sophisticated investment banking advice to mining companies participating in transactions globally. With over 3,000 M&A Advisory professionals, Deloitte has one of the largest M&A practices in the world. It has an extensive presence in Asia Pacific - with over 900 M&A professionals based in this region. Deloitte is also a leading global provider of professional services to the mining sector with extensive experience advising on middle market transactions, and a number of active engagements in the base metals, coal and steel segments. The core service team working with Fortune will be based in Deloitte's Global Mining Centers of Excellence in Vancouver, Beijing, Seoul, Tokyo, Mumbai and Melbourne; also drawing on experienced professionals from other Deloitte Mining Centres in Toronto, Singapore, Sydney, Perth, Moscow, Johannesburg, and Sao Paulo.
About Fortune Minerals Limited:
Fortune is a diversified resource company with several mineral deposits and a number of exploration projects, all located in Canada. The Company is focused on the development of the Mount Klappan anthracite metallurgical coal deposits in BC and the NICO gold-cobalt-bismuth-copper deposit in the NT. As part of the development of the NICO deposit, Fortune is developing a hydrometallurgical plant in Saskatchewan to process NICO concentrates to high value metal products. The company has also acquired the buildings and equipment from the Golden Giant Mine at Hemlo, Ontario, which have been dismantled, moved, and stored for relocation to NICO. In addition, the Company owns the Sue-Dianne copper-silver-gold deposit and other exploration projects in the NT. Fortune is focused on outstanding performance and growth of shareholder value through assembly and development of high quality mineral resource projects.
This press release contains forward-looking information. This forward-looking information includes statements with respect to, among other things, the proposed development of the Mount Klappan and NICO projects, anticipated production therefrom and the proposed development of the Saskatchewan Metals Processing Plant ('SMPP'). Forward-looking information is based on the opinions and estimates of management at the date the information is given, and is subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking information. These factors include the inherent risks involved in the exploration and development of mineral properties, the inherent volatility of metal prices, the risk that the Company may not be able to arrange the necessary financing to construct and operate the Mount Klappan and NICO mines and the SMPP, uncertainties with respect to the receipt or timing of required permits for the development of the Mount Klappan and NICO projects and the SMPP, the possibility of delays in the commencement of production from the Mount Klappan and NICO projects and construction of the SMPP and other factors. Readers are cautioned to not place undue reliance on forward-looking information because it is possible that predictions, forecasts, projections and other forms of forward-looking information will not be achieved by the Company. The forward-looking information contained herein is made as of the date hereof and the Company assumes no responsibility to update or revise it to reflect new events or circumstances, except as required by law.
Fortune Minerals Limited
CONTACT:
Fortune Minerals Limited Renmark Financial Communications
Robin Goad, President, or Barbara
Troy Nazarewicz Komorowski: bkomorowski@renmarkfinancial.com,
Investor Relations or
Manager Bettina
info@fortuneminerals.com Filippone: bfilippone@renmarkfinancial.com
Tel.: (519) 858-8188 Montreal Tel: (514) 939-3989, Toronto Tel.
Fax: (519) 858-8155 (416) 644-2020
www.fortuneminerals.com Montreal Fax: (514) 939-3717, Toronto Fax.
(416) 644-2021
www.renmarkfinancial.com
