Shares in Sundance Resources naturally fell yesterday after a month long suspension in the wake the death of its entire board in a plane crash in Africa.
Sundance shares fell 2.5c or nearly 20% in early trading after about 40 million shares changed hands.
But by the afternoon the share price had recovered a little and by the close they were down only 7.7% or 1c at 12c. Volume for the day was around 54 million shares, so there was a considerable easing in the selling after the first half an hour’s trading.
Sundance shares have been in a voluntary trading halt since June 21.
The Sundance board’s plane went missing en route to the company’s Mbalam project in Cameroon on June 19 and the news of their deaths became known on June 22, when the wreckage was found in the Republic of Congo.
Sundance on Friday said it had received environmental approval from the Cameroon government for the Mbalam project.
Sundance also on Friday said it was in discussions with potential strategic partners with an interest in building, operating and financing key project infrastructure.
Shareholders on August 16 on whether to confirm reinstated Sundance chairman George Jones, commercial lawyer Michael Blakiston investment banker Adam Rankine-Wilson, mining industry figure Barry Eldridge and former KPMG partner Fiona Harris as board members.
A bit of good news yesterday for engineering and project management group Ausenco Ltd.
It said yesterday it had won a big contract to provide works for Canadian miner Taseko Mines Ltd.
The $C814 million ($A890 million) contract is to provide engineering design and procurement services for Taseko’s Prosperity gold-copper project in British Columbia.
Ausenco chief executive Zimi Meka said the work initially would involve managing the first stage of the engineering and procurement phase of the project, and would ramp up as Taseko’s key project milestones were reached.
The Prosperity Project hosts a gold-copper deposit with proven and probable reserves of 831 million tonnes containing 3.6 billion pounds of recoverable copper and 7.7 million ounces of recoverable gold.
Located in south-central British Columbia, Canada, the plant is expected to mill at 70,000 tonnes per day, with estimated annual production of approximately 110 million pounds of copper and 240,000 ounces of gold, according to Ausenco’s statement.
The announcement comes after the company revealed on June 30 that it was taking a $6.8 million "impairment charge" in its June 30 accounts and result.
In May the company said it expected a loss of $8 to $9 million in the June half year. That did not include the impairment charge revealed on June 30, so the group is looking at an interim loss of around $15 to $16 million.
Ausenco shares lost 5c yesterday to end at $2.02.
Shares in African coal hopeful, Riversdale Mining, fell heavily in yesterday’s market sell down after it said it had completed the first stage of a capital raising.
The miner said it had successfully completed the $174 million institutional component of the accelerated pro-rate entitlement offer and a $102 million share placement.
The money is being raised to speed up development of its Benga project in Africa.
Riversdale sold the shares at $9.40 each, a discount to the $10.20 price at which the stock last traded.
The shares fell more than 6%, or 67c to end at $9.63, so it was a good result in the end with the discount not fully reflected after the post issue selling.
Funds raised under the entitlement offer will partly provide for Riversdale’s equity component for the expedited development of the Benga coal project in Mozambique.
Riversdale is targeting production of 20 million tonnes a year by 2013.
"The funds will also be used to fund scope upgrades to Benga Stage 1, accelerated logistics development for the Benga Coal Project, working capital for Benga Stage 1, and exploration of Riversdale’s other Mozambique tenements," the company said.
From Wednesday, eligible retail shareholders will be able to take part in the capital raising under the same terms as the institutional offer.
The retail entitlement offer is fully underwritten and is expected to raise $61 million, Riversdale said.
