Well will you look at this. Will there ever be a better reason to vote down the current offers?
(The following is a reformatted version of a press release issued by Waterpan Mining Consortium Pty and received via electronic mail. The release was confirmed by the sender.)
1 June 2012
BACKGROUND FIU operates the Ezulwini Gold Mine, an underground mining operation, and Mine Waste Solutions (MWS), a tailings recovery facility. Both operations are in South Africa on the Wits Gold Basin. FIU is currently in an advanced process of selling off both its assets. Gold One made an offer to acquire Ezulwini for C$70m and Anglo Gold Ashanti to acquire Mine Waste Solutions for C$ 335m to enable FIU to pay debt amounting to approximately C$330 million (Three Hundred and Thirty Million Canadian Dollars). The board of FIU has agreed to proceed with both offers, pending shareholder approval, which is scheduled for 13 June 2012. We are aware that a significant number of the minorities are dissatisfied with the offer and will vote against the offer, with one of the minorities pledging its support to WMC management should WMC table an offer to acquire FIU. The support is on the back of the depth of experience in the WMC management team and confidence in the teams to turnaround FIU.
WMC is in the final throes of raising the necessary funds to enable it to table a substantial offer to FIU shareholders to acquire 100% of FIU including its primary assets Ezulwini Mine and Mine Waste Solutions (MWS). The funds being raised, and if successfully concluded will also allow WMC to service the FIU debts being the convertible debentures due on 30 June 2010, the Gold One International bridging loan and the Canadian and ZAR notes due in March 2012.
WMC therefore believes it appropriate to inform FIU shareholders that, although our fund raising exercise is not yet complete, a substantial offer is imminent and that shareholders should exercise caution in deciding whether to vote in favor of the asset sale proposed by the FIU Board of Directors.
Signed
LJ (Chopper) van der Bijl Director +27 82 854 8335