Trevali Mining used a part of the proceeds from the sale of its majority stake in the Rosh Pinah zinc mine to repay its debt owed to its senior secured lenders and partly repay its secured debt obligations owed to Glencore Canada
Appian buys Rosh Pinah zinc mine in Namibia. (Credit: Chris Wiedenhoff from Pixabay)
Appian Capital Advisory has acquired an 89.96% interest in the producing Rosh Pinah zinc mine, located in the Kharas region in southern Namibia, from Trevali Mining.
In December, Trevali signed a share and asset purchase agreement with Appian Natural Resources Fund III and Appian Natural Resources (UST) Fund III LP.
Under the agreement, Appian has purchased the issued and outstanding shares held by Trevali in GLCR and assumed certain capital loans owed to Trevali by subsidiaries of GLCR.
Trevali used a part of the proceeds to repay its debt owed to its senior secured lenders and partly repay its secured debt obligations owed to Glencore Canada.
Appian founder and CEO Michael W Scherb said: “This acquisition marks a significant milestone for Appian as we continue to develop our world-class portfolio of highly attractive zinc assets, a critical metal that will help facilitate the upcoming energy transition.
“We look forward to welcoming the 450 employees at Rosh Pinah to Appian as we utilise our extensive operational and project development expertise to support the existing management team with delivering the Rosh Pinah 2.0 expansion project.
“We extend our gratitude to the Namibian government, our valued partners, and the local community for their trust and support.”
Rosh Pinah is an operating underground zinc-lead mine located around 800km south of Windhoek in southwestern Namibia, with a 2,000 tonnes per day milling operation.
The mine has been in continuous operation since 1969, producing zinc and lead sulphide concentrates, smaller amounts of copper, silver, and gold.
Appian intends to restart the Rosh Pinah expansion project that extends the mill throughput from 0.7 million tonnes to 1.3 million tonnes of ore per annum and increases zinc equivalent production to 170 million pounds per annum.
The expansion project includes the construction of new processing facilities, including the addition of a paste fill and water treatment plant, along with a dedicated portal and decline.
Appian is the investment advisor to long-term value-focused private capital funds that invest solely in mining and mining-related companies.
The purchase of a majority stake in the Rosh Pinah mine follows Appian’s investment in Vedra Metals in Italy and Pine Point in Canada.
Blake, Cassels & Graydon served as counsel to Trevali and Stikeman Elliott as counsel to Appian, while FTI Consulting Canada served as a court-appointed monitor for the transaction.
National Bank Financial served as a financial advisor and Black Swan Advisors as a restructuring advisor to Trevali, while National Bank Financial served as a financial advisor to Trevali.