Ortac shares soar on positive Slovakia court ruling

Shares in Ortac Resources soared on Monday after the company said it had won an appeal over opposition to its Slovakian project.

The AIM- listed exploration and mine development company said the decision concerned a judicial proceeding brought against the District Environmental Office (DEO) in the town of Ziar nad Hronom.

They cover an underground mining application submitted in 2014 which was approved by the DEO. Following this, an appeal was lodged in the regional court in Banska Bystrica by a local NGO group and the local municipality.

“The company has been informed that the regional court dismissed the appeal. Further judicial proceedings with respect to a decision made by the Central Mining Bureau for the same application are currently underway and a decision is expected in due course,” Ortac said.

Vassilios Carellas, Ortac's chief executive said: "It is sometimes necessary for exploration and development companies to navigate local opposition to new projects. With such a backdrop, it is extremely promising to see the regional court rule in favour of the environmental office, but it is even more encouraging to see that the application submitted by the Company has passed such rigorous scrutiny by both the environmental office and the regional courts."

“The company has also been advised by its lawyers that it has recently been cleared to proceed with a surface mining application which had been held up by the actions of local opposition groups.”
Ortac shares were up 11% to 0.04p at 1526 BST.