(TSX: TVI)
- Amendment to existing bridge loan facility provides for up to
$5 million new funding of which $3 million secured from LIM Asia
Special Situations Master Fund Ltd
- Sulphide Project anticipated to start up in mid-November, subject to
successful further financing arrangements under discussion
CALGARY, Oct. 14 /CNW/ - TVI Pacific Inc. (TSX: "TVI" or the "Company")
announced today that the Company and its Philippine affiliate, TVI Resource
Development (Phils.) Inc. ("TVIRD"), have signed an Amendment Agreement to the
Omnibus Loan and Security Agreement originally signed with LIM Asia Arbitrage
Fund Inc. and LIM Asia Special Situations Master Fund Ltd. (the "Lenders") on
March 11, 2008. The amended loan agreement provides for up to an additional
US$5 million in bridge financing ("Tranche B") of which US$3 million is
immediately available from the Lenders and the additional US$2 million may be
secured from a lender acceptable to the Lenders. The Company intends to
drawdown the above proceeds in the coming weeks. Background information
regarding the original bridge financing agreement is set out in the news
release disseminated by the Company on March 13, 2008, and available at
tvi2014.q4web.com.
Certain statements in this News Release constitute forward-looking
statements, including statements respecting the timing of perfection of the
security interest contemplated by the Loan Agreement and the anticipated
timing of commencement of mining and processing activities at the Canatuan
Sulphide Project. Readers should refer to the cautionary statement that
appears at the end of this News Release.
The principle purpose of the Tranche B facility will be to provide TVIRD
with working capital funding to further advance the construction of its
Sulphide Project at the Canatuan mine site, located on the Zamboanga Peninsula
in the Southern Philippines. The amended loan agreement provides that
approximately US$1 million of the funds will be used to fully repay the
Tranche C facility of 42.7 million Philippine pesos including Principal and
Interest.
TVIRD is continuing discussions with several financial institutions with
regard to both the additional US$2 million provided for under the Amendment
Agreement, and to longer term financing for the Sulphide Project and other
investments. TVIRD reports that, subject to successful conclusion of these
discussions, the Sulphide Project is anticipated to start producing copper
concentrates in mid-November, 2008.
There can be no assurance that these financing discussions will be
successful and that additional financing will be available to the Company or
TVIRD on terms acceptable to them.
"We are pleased to further strengthen the relationship that TVI has
developed with its key Lenders", said Cliff James, President and CEO of TVI.
"Given the extreme turmoil in the global credit markets, we believe the
additional investment by our financial partners is a testament to the robust
nature of the Sulphide Project."
The Amendment Agreement stipulates that the original maturity date for
the US$15 million facility ("Tranche A"), previously drawn down by the
Company, will be extended for an additional 30 days or up to November 16,
2008. In addition, the following interest and fees will be capitalized to form
part of the loan principal: (i) all accrued and unpaid interest on the Tranche
A facility as of the original maturity date (US$749,000); (ii) extension fee
equivalent to one percent (1%) of the amount of the Tranche A facility for the
extension of the maturity date of the Tranche A facility by thirty (30) days
(US$157,490).
As contemplated by the Amendment Agreement, the Company has guaranteed
the obligations of TVIRD under the Amendment Agreement; and TVI Limited, a
wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company, has granted a security interest to the
Lenders that covers the outstanding shares of TVI International Marketing
Limited, through which the Company holds its interest in TVIRD. In addition,
TVIRD has granted to the Lenders a security interest covering substantially
all of its assets.
About TVI Pacific Inc. (TSX: TVI)
---------------------------------
TVI Pacific Inc. is a publicly traded Canadian mining company focused on
exploring for and producing precious and base metals within district scale
systems in the Philippines. The Company's interest in the Canatuan Mine and
its other Philippine assets are held through its affiliate, TVI Resource
Development (Phils.) Inc.
Certain information set out in this News Release constitutes
forward-looking information. Forward-looking statements are often, but not
always, identified by the use of words such as "seek", "anticipate", "plan",
"continue", "estimate", "expect", "may", "will", "intend", "could", "might",
"should", "believe", "scheduled" and similar expressions. Forward-looking
statements are based upon the opinions and expectations of management of the
Company as at the effective date of such statements and, in certain cases,
information received from or disseminated by third parties. Although the
Company believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking
statements are based upon reasonable assumptions and that information received
from or disseminated by third parties is reliable, it can give no assurance
that those expectations will prove to have been correct. Forward-looking
statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties (known and unknown)
that could cause actual outcomes to differ materially from those anticipated
or implied by such forward-looking statements. These factors include, but are
not limited to, such things as the ability of the Company and TVIRD to perfect
the security interest contemplated by the Loan Agreement within ordinary
timeframes; the occurrence of events that could have a material adverse effect
on the business, operations, property or financial condition of the Company
and its affiliates; the volatility of prices for precious metals and base
metals; commodity supply and demand; fluctuations in currency and interest
rates; inherent risks associated with the exploration and development of
mining properties; ultimate recoverability of mineral reserves; timing,
results and costs of exploration and development activities; availability of
financial resources or third-party financing; new laws (domestic or foreign);
changes in administrative practices; changes in exploration plans or budgets;
and availability of equipment and availability of personnel. Accordingly,
readers should not place undue reliance upon the forward-looking statements
contained in this News Release and such forward-looking statements should not
be interpreted or regarded as guarantees of future outcomes. Forward-looking
information respecting the anticipated timing of completion of perfection of
the security interests contemplated by the Loan Agreement is based upon
information received from LIM and legal counsel to TVIRD and the Company.
Forward-looking information respecting the timing of commencement of mining
and processing activities at the Canatuan Sulphide Project and the anticipated
timing of completion or commissioning of various components of the Sulphide
Project, is based upon progress made to date on the construction of the
Infrastructure required to support mining and processing activities from the
Sulphide zone at Canatuan, advice received from third-party contractors with
respect to the timing of various components of the construction project, prior
experiences of management with construction activities at Canatuan, the
current development plan for Canatuan and the Company's current budget and
overall strategy for Canatuan, which plans, budget and strategy are all
subject to change. The forward-looking statements of the Company contained in
this News Release are expressly qualified, in their entirety, by this
cautionary statement. Various risks to which the Company is exposed in the
conduct of its business (including mining activities) are described in detail
in the Company's Annual Information Form for the year ended December 31, 2007,
which was filed on SEDAR on March 27, 2008 and is available under the
Company's profile at www.SEDAR.com. Subject to applicable securities laws, the
Company does not undertake any obligation to publicly revise the
forward-looking statements included in this News Release to reflect subsequent
events or circumstances.
The Toronto Stock Exchange has neither approved nor disapproved of the
information contained herein.
For further information: Investor Relations - (403) 265-4356 or
tvi-info@tvipacific.com