has management gone off an acquisition, page-9

these companies need cash to develop their mines

Moly mines (molybdenum - an alternative to uranium)
sundance resources (iron ore in Cameroon)
CDU (copper)

wonder if we might be interested in this kind of project?

or are we only interested in companies on the verge of production like Averbury was?



Miners face rocky road to $26b cash, UBS warns

25th September 2008, 7:15 WST

Australian mining companies face an uphill battle chasing nearly $26 billion in funds in the middle of a global credit crisis that has seen borrowing costs soar, UBS analysts warned yesterday.

“Financing new resource projects just got tougher,” the team of Sydney-based analysts said in a note to clients.

“In the new credit-strapped environment, cash and cash flow are now probably the most valuable commodities.”

According to the UBS report, Australian companies still need to come up with nearly $26 billion in additional debt or equity to bring current projects into production.

The analysts said that based on the number of projects which had already locked in funding and those that were still chasing it, magnetite and nickel laterite projects appeared to be most at risk of falling short.

“However, these are also commodities that Chinese companies have expressed a significant amount of interest in,” they said.

“Subsequently, future funding for these projects could potentially be made available from overseas sovereign fund investors.”

Among those chasing elusive funds are molybdenum hopeful Moly Mines, which needs $1.1 billion to get its flagship Spinifex Ridge project into production; and Sundance Resources, currently planning a $3.3 billion iron ore project in Cameroon.

Iron ore minnow Aurox Resources needs $800 million for its own Balla Balla iron ore project, while Grange Resources is chasing $1.5 billion for its Southdown magnetite project near Albany.