Richmont Mines Inc. and Patricia Mining Corp. Enter Into Acquisition Agreement
27 Octubre 2008 - 2:01PM
Marketwired Canada
All amounts in CAN$ - Richmont Mines Inc. ("Richmont") (TSX:RIC)(NYSE-A:RIC) and
Patricia Mining Corp. ("Patricia Mining") (TSX VENTURE:PAT) today announced that
they have entered into a definitive agreement (the "Acquisition Agreement") for
Richmont to acquire all of Patricia Mining's outstanding shares through a
combination of cash and stock. Patricia Mining shareholders will receive $0.15
in cash and 0.055 of one Richmont share for each Patricia Mining share held. The
transaction values Patricia Mining at $0.26 per share and represents a 100%
premium to the closing price of Patricia Mining's shares on October 24, 2008,
the last complete trading day prior to this announcement. The total acquisition
cost is approximately $17 million, including the assumption by Richmont of the
liabilities of Patricia Mining of approximately $5.8 million, of which, $3.1
million is currently due to Richmont. The transaction is expected to close in
mid-December 2008.
As a result of the transaction, Richmont will become the direct and indirect
holder of a 100% interest in the Island Gold Mine which is currently the subject
of a joint venture between Richmont and Patricia Mining. Upon completion of the
transaction, in addition to the cash consideration, Patricia Mining shareholders
will hold approximately 9% of the outstanding shares of Richmont.
Martin Rivard, Richmont's President and CEO, commented, "The acquisition of
Patricia Mining, which results in Richmont being 100% owner of Island Gold,
enables us to increase our operating income and maintain efforts to continuously
improve performance at the mine. After the transaction, we will have a strong
working capital position and more than sufficient cash to support our strategy
of expanding our gold assets in North America." Post-transaction, Richmont
expects to have in excess of $20 million in cash and cash equivalents on hand,
no long-term debt and approximately 26.2 million shares outstanding. Richmont
plans to release its third quarter results on Thursday, October 30, 2008.
The transaction is to be effected by way of a plan of arrangement under the
Business Corporations Act (Ontario). Full details of the transaction, including
the terms of the Acquisition Agreement, will be included in a management
information circular which is expected to be mailed to shareholders of Patricia
Mining on or about November 14, 2008. Patricia Mining plans to hold a special
meeting of its shareholders to approve the transaction on or about December 11,
2008. The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions, including
approval of the transaction by at least 66 2/3% of the votes cast by
shareholders present in person or by proxy at the meeting held to approve the
transaction, "majority of the minority" approval having been obtained and the
absence of material adverse changes.
The board of directors of Patricia Mining has unanimously determined that the
transaction is fair and in the best interests of Patricia Mining and its
shareholders (other than Richmont) and, accordingly, unanimously recommends that
its shareholders vote in favor of the transaction. All officers, directors and
certain major shareholders of Patricia Mining, representing approximately 29% of
the shares outstanding, have entered into irrevocable lock-up agreements with
Richmont under which they have agreed to vote in favor of the transaction and
that they will not support any competing transaction. In the event that the
transaction is not completed under certain circumstances, a termination fee of
$600,000 will be payable by Patricia Mining to Richmont in accordance with the
Acquisition Agreement.
About Richmont Mines Inc.
Richmont produces gold from its operations in Canada and is focused on building
its reserves in North America, and has extensive experience in gold exploration,
development and mining. Since it began production in 1991, Richmont has produced
more than one million ounces of gold from its holdings in Quebec, Ontario and
Newfoundland. Richmont's strategy is to cost-effectively develop its mining
assets, exploit mineralized reserves on properties owned and acquired, or
develop partnerships to expand its reserve base. Richmont routinely posts news
and other important information on its website at: www.richmont-mines.com.
About Patricia Mining Corp.
Patricia Mining is a Canadian gold exploration and development company. Patricia
Mining's main asset is its joint venture interest in the Island Gold Mine
located approximately 50 km northeast of Wawa, Ontario. More information on
Patricia Mining can be found at its website www.patriciamining.com.
Legal Counsel
Richmont is represented by Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP in Toronto, and
Patricia Mining is represented by Cassels Brock and Blackwell LLP in Toronto.
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release contains forward-looking statements that include risks and
uncertainties. When used in this news release, the words "estimate", "project",
"anticipate", "expect", "intend", "believe", "hope", "may" and similar
expressions, as well as "will", "shall" and other indications of future tense,
are intended to identify forward-looking statements. The forward-looking
statements are based on current expectations and apply only as of the date on
which they were made. The factors that could cause actual results to differ
materially from those indicated in such forward-looking statements include
changes in the prevailing price of gold, the Canadian-United States exchange
rate, grade of ore mined and unforeseen difficulties in mining operations that
could affect revenues and production costs. Other factors such as uncertainties
regarding government regulations could also affect the results. Other risks may
be set out in Richmont Mines and Patricia Mining' Annual Information Form,
Annual Reports and periodic reports.
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