mehdiabad snippet

sorry I haven't been reading this thread for ages. Seals, I apologise for not replying ages ago. I haven't followed events or even logged into Hotcopper form months. Sorry.

All

I have written to our MD and have had no reply. The text of the email I sent is below the article I've just seen today on Iranfocus.com


MOSCOW, September 20, 2011 (AFP) - Russia and Iran are creating a $1.2 billion joint venture between state company Russian Technologies and Tehran state Bank Saderat to tap into Iran's colossal zinc deposits, Kommersant daily reported Tuesday.

The joint venture will build a mining complex and develop the Mehdiabad mine, according to a September 11 protocol from the Russian-Iranian trade commission meeting.

At the meeting Iran's Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi and Russian Energy Minister Sergei Shmatko agreed to cooperate on the project.

Russian Technologies will participate in the project together with a Turkey-Seychelles company Kapsad International, while Iran will be represented in the venture by Bank Saderat (BSI), a major institution blacklisted by the US Treasury and the UN Security Council.

A source close to the negotiations told Kommersant that the project was worth up to $1.2 billion, with most funds expected to come from Iran.

The Mehdiabad deposit in central Iran is believed to contain a total of 394 million tonnes of zinc, lead and silver, according to the Australian company Union Resources that was given a license to exploit the mine in 2006.

Australia's involvement in the project appears to be frozen.

"Given the current political environment in Iran, it may be some time before the development of the Mehdiabad project can proceed," Union Resources website says.
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The text of the email I sent our MD about two weeks ago is below (He hasn't replied at all). He has always struck me as a bit of dummy when it comes to Iran. The broker research I read suggested he was trying to flog it off for less than the money we expended on drilling it. The Arab spring will reach Iran at some point (I think I am on record here long before the first uprising in Tunisia happened as saying political change is coming to Iran and that their system of arbitrary confiscation of individuals' assets, failure to follow due process, failure to adhere to international agreements (hanging minors in public - a 17 year old hanged yesterday in Karaj - a place I once worked in), the Government's heavy handed censorship (Khosrow and Shireen a (800 year old?) Persian Classic edited), the supreme leader's belief in suffering hell on earth to get to heavan, etc. and the preponderance of a young relatively tech savvy population is not the best solution for a stable country. So it is with complete disgust I view any attempt to flog of Mehdiabad cheaply. Hence the reason for this post. Sorry.I had an automatic reply from the company saying the email would be answered on 7/9/11. But since then heard nothing.

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Given Leon Panetta, the former head of the CIA and current US Defence Secretary, has this week said revolution in Iran is only a matter of time, why have we been in talks to sell off our stake (as reported in Paterson?s broker note) for less than historic cost (the same sum you wrote off on becoming MD of our company)?
What assurances can you give that you are not tailoring our company?s assets to match your past non-Iran expertise?
Which Persian newspapers are you reading to keep abreast of events in Iran? How often do you eat fesinjan and gormeh sabzi? Have you had Persian dancing lessons? What would you like about living in Yazd? Which Persian poet is your favourite? Have you learnt to play any Persian musical instruments, and if so which, and which Iranian films have you watched?
And just as importantly, why have you financed our company with debt when it has no income? Why did you do this only a few weeks before publication of the scoping study? What transfers of wealth from small shareholder to lender do you expect to take place as a result of any delays in completion of the DFS on the Namibian project?
Did you learn anything from the demise of Copper Resources Corporation, an AIM listed company you were once a director of and which apparently had high debts and no income?
Thanks in advance.

P.S. From reading company announcements it is still a mystery which shareholder appointed you initially. Do you wish this state of affairs to persist?