Jul 1 2013
Turquoise Hill Resources today announced that it has entered into an agreement with majority shareholder Rio Tinto for a non-revolving bridge facility for up to US$225 million (the "Bridge Facility") maturing on August 12, 2013.
Advances made under the Bridge Facility will be used by Turquoise Hill to fund operations and current underground development of the Oyu Tolgoi mine. The previous bridge funding facility, agreed on April 17, 2012, expired undrawn on May 23, 2013. Turquoise Hill expects to make an initial drawdown under the Bridge Facility in order to fund a cash call obligation for Oyu Tolgoi, which is due on July 2, 2013.
In the event the Bridge Facility is not repaid in full at the maturity date or in case of an event of default under the terms of the Bridge Facility, Rio Tinto may convert any outstanding amounts into common shares at a price per share equal to 85% of the then prevailing five-day volume weighted average trading price of the shares on the New York Stock Exchange. The full agreement will be filed on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.
The Company continues to explore various financing alternatives which would allow it to repay the Bridge Facility in full prior to maturity and fund the operations at Oyu Tolgoi pending receipt of $300 million in proceeds from the sale of its 50% interest in Altynalmas Gold Ltd. and completion of project financing.
Oyu Tolgoi Update
Commissioning of the Oyu Tolgoi concentrator continues to progress. The concentrator has recently achieved daily run rates in excess of 80% of nameplate capacity. To date, more than 40,000 tonnes of concentrate have been produced.
All necessary permits have been received and the mine is ready to commence concentrate shipments. Shipping will begin as soon as the Mongolian Government indicates its support for Oyu Tolgoi to do so.
Turquoise Hill and Rio Tinto continue to engage with lenders to finalize the project financing plan with the aim of raising approximately $4 billion. On April 17, 2013 Rio Tinto signed commitment letters with 15 global banks that locked in pricing and terms. Project financing requires the support of the Government of Mongolia and is subject to the approval of the Oyu Tolgoi Board of Directors, which includes representatives from the Mongolian Government. Turquoise Hill continues to work with Rio Tinto and the Government of Mongolia to obtain this approval.