Vast Resources shares sparkle on diamond victory in Zimbabwe
( ), an AIM-listed mining company with projects in Romania, Tajikistan, and Zimbabwe, updated markets on progress in settlement discussions regarding the release of a historic parcel of diamonds held in custody at the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe.
Vast reported that the High Court of Zimbabwe has granted a default order relating to the release of the historic parcel of 129,400 carats of rough diamonds. The signed order is expected "in the coming days".
The High Court order should allow for the the process of releasing the parcel into Vast's possession to begin. Vast said the final quality assortment of the parcel will be determined when the stones are in the Vast's possession and can be independently cleaned and valued.
Andrew Prelea, Chief Executive Officer at Vast Resources PLC, commented: "Despite taking longer than anticipated, I am very pleased to announce that after many years of hard work and discussion with the Zimbabwean Government the matter regarding the release of the Historic Parcel has now been amicably settled in a manner supported by an Order of the High Court of Zimbabwe. This demonstrates the Zimbabwe Government’s and in particular His Excellency President Cmd. E D Mnangagwa’s commitment to resolving legacy issues related to investment in Zimbabwe in a transparent and legal manner for the mutual benefit of investors and the Country and we now look forward to the releasing of the Historic Parcel to the Company."
View from Vox
Vast had been in a legal battle over custody of the referenced parcel of diamonds in Zimbabwe for several years. Today's announcement finally settled the matter and officially set off the process of releasing the parcel into Vast's possession.
Once the remaining legal and administrative work is finalised, Vast will be able to refocus on other opportunities in Zimbabwe. Vast is currently in the finalisation stage of a joint venture mining agreement on the Community Diamond Concession, Chiadzwa, in the Marange Diamond Fields in Zimbabwe.
Markets reacted strongly to the news at first, pushing Vast shares up over 22% following the announcement. Shares have since settled to +6% as of time of writing but are still up over 300% year-to-date.
Vast shares soared +160% on Tuesday after the company announced 70% higher revenues in the 6 months to 31 October 2022 due to higher production volumes at its flagship Baita Plai polymetallic mine in Romania. With consecutive quarterly production increases set to continue into 2023, the company is on track to meet its 1H23 target of profitability with 14,000 tonnes/month of name plate capacity at Baita Plai.
Investors should stay tuned for a possible upgrade of Baita Plai's resource in 2023.
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