Greatland Gold raises £249m to help fund Havieron acquisition

Greatland Gold announced on Wednesday that it has raised £248.6m through an oversubscribed placing of new shares, aimed at funding the acquisition of key gold-copper assets.

The AIM-traded company said it issued 5.18 billion new shares at 4.8p each to secure the necessary capital.

It said the funding would support the acquisition of a 70% ownership interest in the Havieron gold-copper project, consolidating its total ownership to 100%.

Additionally, the acquisition included 100% ownership of the Telfer gold-copper mine and other related assets in the Paterson region of Western Australia.

The board said the total cost of the acquisition, agreed with subsidiaries of Newmont Corporation, amounted to up to $475m, including debt repayments.

It said the proceeds from the placing would cover the $155.1m cash component of the acquisition, repayment of a $52.4m loan related to the Havieron joint venture, and other financial obligations, such as working capital and transaction-related costs.

Alongside the placing, Greatland also launched a retail offer for UK-based investors, allowing further participation in the share issuance.

The offer, which closes on 12 September 2024, could close earlier if oversubscribed.

“We are delighted to have successfully closed the placing, which was strongly supported and oversubscribed,” said managing director Shaun Day.

“The placing proceeds will fully fund the cash consideration for the acquisition of 100% ownership of Havieron and Telfer, to make Greatland a material producer of gold and copper.”

At 1427 BST, shares in Greatland Gold were down 27.04% at 5.18p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.