Buyers circle following Panoramic Resources failure
https://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/dataroom/buyers-circle-following-panoramic-resources-failure/news-story/6c59670fdee4c15ca756bdf7b5576147A handful of companies are believed to be interested in buying Panoramic Resources’ Savannah nickel project, planning to ramp it up once the nickel price recovers, following the collapse of the Western Australia miner last month.
The Australian reported that the recent fall in nickel prices saw FTI Consulting called in as administrator in December.
Administrators had planned to keep the mine running before opting to suspend operations, costing 140 jobs, in January.
Last year, when Panoramic Resources was about to raise equity, sources described the company as a tough asset with a good management team.
Panoramic was placed in voluntary administration on December 14 after a month-long strategic review of options for the Savannah project, triggered by falling nickel prices.
But the review failed to find a sale, recapitalisation or partnering option that would provide sufficient financial certainty to the company and its stakeholders, Panoramic said at the time.
Now the thinking is that the mine may almost be given away.
Indonesia has flooded the market with a vast amount of nickel, pushing prices down by 45 per cent on the London Metal Exchange in 2023, the battery metal’s largest decline since 2008.
Mr Woodhouse said the administrators, with assistance from Treadstone Resource Partners which conducted the strategic review, would continue a dual-track strategy to sell or recapitalise the Panoramic business.
Panoramic restarted operations at Savannah in the East Kimberley region in 2021. The project has a 12-year mine life.
When the company raised equity last year, it was under pressure to repay lender Trafigura and had faced operational issues with its Savannah project.
IGO at that time had 21 per cent of the company, after inheriting that through its acquisition of Western Areas.
Zeta Resources, backed by well-known investor Duncan Saville, also had 13.1 per cent.
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