Brightstar raises $12 million

A day after confirming its intention to acquire Linden Gold Alliance, Brightstar Resources has announced it will raise $12 million, primarily to develop its Menzies and Laverton gold projects. 

Under the two-tranche placement, Brightstar said it would issue approximately 535.7 million shares at $0.014 per share during the initial tranche to raise $7.5 million. A further $4.5 million would be raised courtesy of a further 321.4 million shares in the secondary tranche, subject to shareholder approval.

Argonaut Securities and Canaccord Genuity acted as joint lead managers of the placement, which received strong backing from major shareholders Collins St Asset Management and fellow mining entity St Barbara. Brightstar predicts it will have around $20 million cash on hand following the completion of the placement. 

On Tuesday, Brightstar told the market it had entered into a bid implementation agreement with unlisted Linden Gold. Under the deal, Brightstar would acquire the company via an off-market scrip takeover offer placing Linden Gold's undiluted equity value around $23.7 million. 

As part of the offer, Linden Gold shareholders will receive 6.9 Brightstar shares and options for every Linden Gold share and option held, with the company's directors unanimously supporting the notion in the event of no superior proposal. 

Brightstar last traded at $0.015 per share as of 11.51am AWST, down 6 per cent.

Elsewhere, West Perth-based Barton Gold has announced it will raise $4 million - via a $3 million placement and $1 million share purchase plan at 24 cents per share - in order to ensure high-priority activities at its Tunkilla and Tarcoola gold projects in South Australia can be fully funded.

“This placement further strengthens our share register composition as we progress into Tunkillia scoping studies and Tarcoola high-grade target drilling and represents a further endorsement of Barton’s platform and strategy," Barton managing director Alex Scanlon said.

"We thank our institutional and sophisticated partners for their continued and growing support of our vision.

“Together with the ongoing sales tender for more than four million dollars contained gold-in-concentrates, Barton is very well capitalised to advance several high-value initiatives and key project milestones during the coming year.”