Benguet withdraws from KingKing project

MANILA, Philippines - Benguet Corp. is finalizing its complete withdrawal from the KingKing project in Pantukan, Compostela Valley in Northern Mindanao in favor of St. Augustine Mining Ltd., a subsidiary of Russell Mining & Minerals Inc. (RMMI).

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) yesterday, Benguet said it has signed a “heads of terms” agreement with St. Augustine.

The agreement sets the terms for the transfer of Benguet’s interest subject to a due diligence and entry into a definitive transaction documents.

Benguet told the PSE that the signing of the agreement would not affect the status of the approved mineral production sharing agreement (MPSA) for the Kingking project.

The Kingking project is a copper and gold property.

Benguet has given up control of the Kingking project to its partner the Nationwide Development Corp. (Nadecor) even as the publicly listed mining firm remains a partner in the project.

If Benguet completes its deal with St. Augustine, the latter will become the partner of Nadecor which was approved just last May by the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB).

Benguet has been unable for several years to proceed with the Kingking project because of its heavy debt burden and its repeated failure to find a suitable investor/partner for the project.