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Gemfields Secures $65 Million in Financing for Growth
The gemstone miner and marketer said that $45 million of that will be used to ramp up production at its Montepuez ruby mine in Mozambique.
A selection of rough rubies from Gemfields’ Montepuez mine in Mozambique. The company has secured $45 million in financing to increase production at the operation.
London--Gemfields has secured four credit facilities totaling $65 million to be used to ramp up production at the Montepuez ruby mine and for general expenses.
Three banks in Mozambique allocated loans of $15 million each for Montepuez. CFO Janet Boyce said the funding will help with its growth and expansion plans to increase annual production at the ruby operation to approximately 20 million carats within the next three years.
The company reported production of 8.4 million carats of ruby and corundum in its last fiscal year ended June 2015.
The remaining $20 million came from Macquarie Bank Limited, replacing the $25 million debt facility entered into in April 2015, and will be used for general corporate purposes, according to Gemfields.
The facilities join Kagem’s existing revolving credit facility of $30 million with Barclays Bank in Zambia, which is aiding in the expansion of the emerald mine to more than 40 million carats. Gemfields said production was 30.1 million carats of emerald and beryl during the last fiscal year.
The financing also will assist in “smoothing the company’s cash flows, given the intermittent nature of revenue in-flows from the colored gemstone auctions,” Boyce said.
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