Key points
- Income for the quarter was US$446,000 versus US$183,000 a year earlier, while the loss was US$335,000 (US$0.01 per share) compared with US$562,000 (US$0.02) in 1996.
- The NamSSol seabed crawler, a 120 ton, 2kW (3,000 horsepower) unit built with Dresser Industries subsidiary SubSea Offshore Limited, was completed in early October and is designed to recover one million cubic metres of seabed material per year.
- MV Kovambo sailed from Cape Town to the UK on September 7 1997 for installation of the NamSSol and its launch and recovery system, with mining on schedule to begin in the fourth quarter of 1997 targeting 150,000 carats annually.
- In July 1997 the company raised US$15.01 million gross through a 3,930,000 share offering led by Nomura International plc, and Andrew Buxton, a former Rio Tinto executive director, was appointed to its board.
Income for the three months ended August 31 1997 was US$446,000 (1996: US$183,000). Loss for the three months was US$335,000 (1996: US$562,000) and the loss per share was US$0.01 (1996: US$0.02).
Resource property costs for the period were US$1,382,000 (1996: US$2,265,000). At the end of the period total cash and short term investments were US$18,616,000 (1996: US$16,272,000).
Construction of the company’s diamond mining system continued during the quarter and was completed in early October. In collaboration with Dresser Industries subsidiary SubSea Offshore Limited, the company has developed a 2kW (3,000 horsepower), 120 tons seabed crawler which was assembled at SubSea’s base in Aberdeen. The NamSSol is designed to recover one million cubic metres of seabed material per year through its centrifugal pumping system. It is specified to mine between 0.3 and 0.4 sq km per year.
MV Kovambo sailed from Cape Town to the United Kingdom on September 7 1997 for installation of the NamSSol and its launch and recovery system and for trials and testing in the North Sea. A 50 tons per hour diamond processing plant was installed on the vessel while in Cape Town.
The project is on schedule to commence mining during the fourth quarter 1997 with an annual full production target of 150,000 carats.
The capital cost of the mining project is estimated at US$18 million.
Mr Peter Looijen has been appointed as offshore operations director.
Mobilization of the exploration program in two of the company’s Angolan concessions commenced during the quarter. Base camps have been established in Lunda Norte and Lunda Sul and the company is commissioning various parts of the project infrastructure. Exploration of the alluvial deposits will be carried out by river dredging and is expected to commence in October 1997.
Further exploration off the coast of Namibia remains a high priority. The company’s research and development team continued to review marine exploration methods and have commissioned detailed design work during the period.
In July 1997 the company completed a common share offering of 3,930,000 shares to raise gross proceeds of US$15.01 million. Nomura International plc acted as lead underwriters in the issue. Funds are being allocated to the mining project and to further exploration.
Subsequent to quarter end, Mr Andrew Buxton was appointed as a main board director. Mr Buxton has over 25 years experience in the mining industry. He is a director of Norwich Union and was previously an executive director of Rio Tinto.
