Date dispute over $80m Cape Lambert pay

Cape Lambert Iron Ore Ltd is due to receive its second cash payment for the sale of its namesake project from China Metallurgical Group Corp a week later than first planned.

In an announcement today, Cape Lambert said it will receive $80 million from MCC Mining, a subsidiary of CMGC, on September 22 rather than its planned September 15 deadline.

The payment change centres on the settlement date used for the payment schedule for the overall $400 million price tag for the project, with Cape Lambert using July 31 as the settlement date.

MCC Mining said it was using August 6 as its settlement date.

Cape Lambert has already received the first payment of $240 million.

MCC has formed a partnership with Russia's Evraz Group SA to develop the project.

Meanwhile, Cape Lambert today announced it would pay up to $100 million to shareholders in unfranked dividends and return of capital.

The exact amount paid for each share will be determined after the receipt of the second payment from MCC and audit clearance of Cape Lambert's accounts.

The Western Australian company plans to start drilling its Cape Lambert South project in the Pilbara next month.