Metro Mining raises $17.5m in institutional placement for Bauxite Hills

Metro Mining’s equity raising effort has led to an oversubscribed institutional placement, exceeding its initial equity raising ambitions of $15 million up to a total of $17.5 million.
Metro’s existing major shareholder, Greenstone Resources, fought to maintain its 19.8 per cent stake via its anti-dilution rights.
The institutional placement was heavily subscribed by Metro’s existing shareholders as well as new major domestic and international institutional investors.
The success of its institutional placement met the miner’s capacity to raise up of an additional $2.5 million, which has been arranged in the anticipation of over-subscriptions.
Metro managing director Simon Finnis said, “This capital raising strengthens Metro’s balance sheet as we continue to successfully ramp-up production at the Bauxite Hills Mine and make Metro a leading independent seaborne bauxite supply into China.
Metro has completed four bauxite shipments to China since the commencement of its Bauxite Hills project in April, carrying 62,000 tonnes of bauxite in its first shipment.
The miner also achieved its daily average ship loading rates during its fifth ship’s initial loading, which was done at a rate of 10,000t/day, up from its previous average of 7000t/day.
The company projected the Chinese bauxite imports to increase from around 70Mt in 2018, up to 180Mt in 2028.