REG - Antofagasta PLC - CENTINELA SECOND CONCENTRATOR FINANCING

AntofagastaAnnouncement

19/03/2024 08:15

For best results when printing this announcement, please click on link below:
http://newsfile.refinitiv.com/getnewsfile/v1/story?guid=urn:newsml:reuters.com:20240319:nRSS3930Ha&default-theme=true

RNS Number : 3930H  Antofagasta PLC  19 March 2024

 

CENTINELA SECOND CONCENTRATOR FINANCING

 

Antofagasta plc ("Antofagasta" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that
Minera Centinela ("Centinela") has signed definitive agreements with a group
of international lenders for the $2.5 billion project financing of the
Centinela Second Concentrator Project.

Antofagasta's CEO, Iván Arriagada said: "We have agreed competitive financing
terms with strong international lenders, which is testament to the
high-quality nature of this project. The Centinela Second Concentrator Project
is a prime example of how Antofagasta can unlock value from its portfolio and
our dedication to sustainable and responsible copper production. The Company
remains focused on delivering growth and returns, while maintaining a strong
balance sheet."

Financing

The financing for Centinela is a $2.5bn term loan facility with a 4-year
drawdown period and a term of approximately 12 years. The financing has been
provided by a group of international lenders, including the Japan Bank for
International Cooperation, Export Development Canada, the Export-Import Bank
of Korea and several commercial banks (Crédit Agricole Corporate and
Investment Bank, KfW IPEX-Bank, Natixis Corporate & Investment Banking,
Societe Generale and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation).

Water Transport Agreement

Separately, a detailed agreement has been entered into that provides Centinela
with the option to receive water for its current and future operations from an
experienced international consortium who would acquire Centinela's existing
water supply system and build an expansion of this system to supply the
Centinela Second Concentrator Project. In order to complete this agreement,
the international consortium is required to close its financing, which is
expected to be finalised during the course of the year.

Under the terms of this agreement, Centinela would transfer its existing water
transportation assets and rights for an estimated amount of $600 million to be
received in 2024. In addition, the construction and associated capital
expenditure for the planned expansion of the water transportation system of
approximately $380 million would be undertaken by the consortium.

The Company has assessed that the terms of this agreement are value accretive
to Centinela.

Centinela Second Concentrator Project

The Centinela Second Concentrator Project will add 170,000 tonnes of
copper-equivalent production, comprising 144,000 tonnes of annual copper
production and associated gold and molybdenum by-products. Through this
expansion, it is expected that Centinela will improve its cost competitiveness
through an increased focus on concentrator capacity that incorporates modern
technologies, increased by-products and greater economies of scale. First
copper production from the project is expected in 2027.

Notes to Editors

Minera Centinela is owned by Antofagasta (70%) and Marubeni Corporation (30%)
and was awarded the Copper Mark in July 2021 for compliance with this
independently verified standard for responsible production. The operation only
uses sea water sources and 100% renewable energy for electrical power.

 

 

 Investors - London                                                             Media - London
 Rosario Orchard                                                                Carole Cable            antofagasta@brunswickgroup.com
 rorchard@antofagasta.co.uk (mailto:rorchard@antofagasta.co.uk)                 (mailto:antofagasta@brunswickgroup.com)

 Robert Simmons                                                                 Telephone               +44 20 7404 5959
 rsimmons@antofagasta.co.uk (mailto:rsimmons@antofagasta.co.uk)

 Telephone                               +44 20
 7808 0988
                                                                                Media - Santiago
                                                                                Pablo Orozco           porozco@aminerals.cl
                                                                                (mailto:porozco@aminerals.cl)

                                                                                Carolina Pica           cpica@aminerals.cl
                                                                                (mailto:cpica@aminerals.cl)

                                                                                Telephone               +56 2 2798 7000

 

 

Register on our website to receive our email alerts at the following address:
https://www.antofagasta.co.uk/investors/news/email-alerts/
(https://www.antofagasta.co.uk/investors/news/email-alerts/)

 

    LinkedIn

 

 

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Cautionary Statement

This announcement contains certain forward-looking statements. All statements
other than historical facts are forward-looking statements. Examples of
forward-looking statements include, without limitation, those regarding the
Group's strategy, plans, objectives or future operating or financial
performance, reserve and resource estimates, commodity demand and trends in
commodity prices, growth opportunities, and any assumptions underlying or
relating to any of the foregoing. Words such as "intend", "aim", "project",
"anticipate", "estimate", "plan", "believe", "expect", "may", "should",
"will", "continue" and similar expressions identify forward-looking
statements.

 

Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties,
assumptions and other factors that are beyond the Group's control. Given these
risks, uncertainties and assumptions, actual results, performance or
achievements could differ materially from any future results, performance or
achievements expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements, which
apply only as at the date of this report. These forward-looking statements are
based on numerous assumptions regarding the Group's present and future
business strategies and the environment in which the Group will operate in the
future. Important factors that could cause actual results, performance or
achievements to differ from those in the forward-looking statements include,
but are not limited to: natural events, global economic and financial
conditions (which may affect our business, results of operations or financial
condition); various political, economic, legal, regulatory, social and other
risks and uncertainties across jurisdictions in which the Group operates;
changes to mining concessions or the imposition of new mining royalties, or
changes to existing mining royalties in the jurisdictions in which the Group
operates; the Group's ability to comply with the extensive body of regulations
governing the mining industry, as well as the need to manage relationships
with local communities; the ongoing effects of the global COVID-19 pandemic;
demand, supply and prices for copper and other long-term commodity price
assumptions (as they materially affect the timing and feasibility of future
projects and developments); trends in the copper mining industry and
conditions of the international copper markets; the effect of currency
exchange rates on commodity prices and operating costs; the availability and
costs associated with mining inputs and labour; operating or technical
difficulties in connection with mining or development activities;  risks,
hazards and/or events and conditions inherent to the mining industry, which
may affect our operations or facilities; employee relations; climate change as
well as the effects of extreme weather conditions; the outcome of any
litigation arbitration, regulatory or administrative proceedings to which the
Group is and may be subject in the future; and actions and activities of
governmental authorities, including changes to laws, regulations or taxation.

 

Except as required by applicable law, rule or regulation, the Group does not
undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking
statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or
otherwise. Past performance cannot be relied on as a guide to future
performance.

 

No statement in this announcement is intended as a profit forecast or estimate
for any period. No statement in this announcement should be interpreted to
indicate a particular level of profit and, as a consequence, it should not be
possible to derive a profit figure for any future period from this report.

 

 

 

This information is provided by RNS, the news service of the London Stock Exchange. RNS is approved by the Financial Conduct Authority to act as a Primary Information Provider in the United Kingdom. Terms and conditions relating to the use and distribution of this information may apply. For further information, please contact
rns@lseg.com (mailto:rns@lseg.com)
 or visit
www.rns.com (http://www.rns.com/)
.

RNS may use your IP address to confirm compliance with the terms and conditions, to analyse how you engage with the information contained in this communication, and to share such analysis on an anonymised basis with others as part of our commercial services. For further information about how RNS and the London Stock Exchange use the personal data you provide us, please see our
Privacy Policy (https://www.lseg.com/privacy-and-cookie-policy)
.   END  AGRFIFSDVRIALIS