Johannesburg GOLD One, which is increasing the Modder East mine near Johannesburg, may have to hedge up to 200 000oz of gold to cover a $65m loan it is finalising.
Gold One has convertible bonds due in December and it is preparing itself in case holders of the bond opt for cash.
The loan was expected to be finalised during Gold One's board meeting in August, CEO Neal Froneman said. An arranging mandate and term sheets for the debt facility have been agreed with Absa Capital and BNP Paribas.
"The only outstanding element that is required to reduce risk measurably (in Gold One) is the debt facility of 65m," RBC Capital Markets analyst Leon Esterhuizen said.
Gold One was on track to produce 80 000oz-100 000oz of gold this year from its new mine, which was a shallow, low-cost operation, he said. The mine would reach steady- state production next year of 150000oz and should generate enough cash to allow the company to pay a dividend.
"We should generate large amounts of cash next year," Mr Froneman said in an interview yesterday. Modder East should produce gold at below 400/oz, well below most South African producers.
Gold One had a five-week wage strike at Modder East, curtailing group production, which came in at 12287oz for the three months to end-June, a 7% decline from the previous quarter.
Gold One also has the smaller Sub Nigel mine, which generated 722oz in the quarter.
The growth prospects in the company lie in the Ventersburg project, where a prefeasibility study into building a mine is under way and should be completed early next year. The deposit is relatively shallow at between 600m and 1000m deep.
The second prospect is called Megamine, and includes a number of properties on the East Rand. These have a resource of 6-million ounces, but they lie deep at 2km below the surface.
This does not fit the asset profile Gold One wishes to have and in the next two to three months the company will tell the market what it intends doing with Megamine, which could include a separate listing or sale of the property.
GDO Price at posting:
26.0¢ Sentiment: Buy Disclosure: Held
