Kibo Mining plc (“Kibo” or the “Company”) (AIM: KIBO; AltX: KBO), the mineral exploration and development company focused on gold, nickel and coal and projects in Africa, is pleased to release its condensed consolidated annual financial results for the year ended 31 December 2017. The Company’s Annual Report, which contains the full financial statements accompanying this announcement, is in the process of being prepared for dispatch to shareholders. A copy of this Annual Report will also be available from the Company’s website at www.kibo.energy. Details of the date and venue for this year’s AGM will be announced on posting of the Annual Financial Results.
Highlights from the Chairman, Christian Schaffalitzky’s statement:
2017 was a challenging year for Kibo as we pushed ahead with our efforts to complete a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) for our flagship Mbeya Coal to Power Project (MCPP) amid significant upheavals and changes in the Tanzanian mining policy and regulatory environment. As might be expected, these events have impacted on our anticipated time line to finalise a PPA with the Tanzanian Government and complete Financial Close on the project. I am delighted to reflect that despite these delays, at the end of 2017, the Tanzanian Government reconfirmed in writing its strong support for the MCPP as an important component of its national energy strategy and undertook to expedite finalisation of the PPA. As you are no doubt aware, this commitment was backed up when we signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with TANESCO (the Tanzanian state electricity company) in February 2018 as a preparatory step to finalising a PPA. Management is now in advanced negotiation with TANESCO on the finalisation of the full PPA.
Kibo Mining’s main achievements in 2017 were:
- The publication of the MCPP Integrated Bankable Feasibility Study (IBFS) at the start of 2017. This was the culmination of 3 years’ work by Kibo and the most important milestone in the development path for the project to date;
- Full environmental certification for both Mbeya Coal Mine as well as Mbeya Power Plant;
- The completion of the divestment of our resource-based gold assets, Imweru and Lubando, in northern Tanzania to AIM listed Katoro Gold PLC in which we retain a 56.7% interest; and
- The terms of the forward payment facility agreed in December 2016 with Sanderson Capital Partners were mutually revised in September 2017 allowing for an extension to the drawdown schedule and part re-payment of funds already drawn by the issue of a convertible loan note to Sanderson which it immediately converted to Kibo shares.