Backed by some of Western Australia’s most high profile business people, gold and uranium mining hopeful Korab Resources is seeking $3 million through a stock market float.
Backed by some of Western Australia’s most high profile business people, gold and uranium mining hopeful Korab Resources is seeking $3 million through a stock market float.
Joining St Georges Terrace-based Korab’s founder Andrej Karpinski on the register as seed capitalists are former Woodside managing director John Akehurst, Wesfarmers chairman Trevor Eastwood, deputy chief executive of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry WA Ross McLean, Azure Capital chairman John Poynton and Joyce Corporation chairman Dan Smetana, or private companies they are associated with.
Mr Karpinski, the company’s chairman and currently its majority shareholder, said Korab planned to lodge a prospectus with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission this week with the aim of funding a feasibility study into developing, in the first instance, the combined 300,000 ounce Melrose and Darlot East projects.
The prospects are close to the Bronzewing-Thunderbox Greenstone belt, in the North Eastern Goldfields region of WA.
Once those projects are underway Mr Karpinski said Korab hopes to complete drilling at the Batchelor gold-uranium project in the Northern Territory.
That deposit is surrounded by a triangle consisting of the Rum Jungle uranium, Woodcutters base metal and Sundance gold prospects, all approximately 50km south of Darwin.
But should Korab seek to develop a mine, it will, along with a growing list of WA-based juniors to acquire uranium assets in the Territory, still be subject to the 1984 Federal Labor Government’s three uranium mines policy.
However, Mr Karpinski, who has a background in commodities trading, financial risk and resources management, is optimistic about the prospect of a change on this issue.
“Even in the Greens movement, there are leaders who are promoting the use of uranium as a substitute for fossil fuels, globally,” he said.
Also on Korab’s board are non-executive directors Malcolm McKenzie, a director of BGC, and Rodney Skeet, a former investment banker.
Korab’s management team includes chief operating officer John Jordan, a geologist with 25 years’ experience, having worked for German uranium miner, Uranerz Exploration and Mining which pulled out of Australia following the implementation of the three mine policy.
But that policy might not be the largest problem facing Korab when and if it decides to develop Batchelor, as the mining industry regards the granting of native title approvals as a substantially tougher prospect in the Territory.
Mr Karpinski said he doesn’t foresee any difficulties on this issue.
“It would be fair to say we have no unresolved issues with respect to native title there,” Mr Karpinski said.
In addition to these projects, the company has in its portfolio two other copper and gold deposits in WA that are yet to be fully explored, Mr Karpinski said.
With high hopes and guarded optimism, he added that investors should judge the prospectus for themselves.
If all goes according to plan, Korab intends to list on the ASX in mid-June.
