Core Gold Board Makes No Recommendation in Response to the Increased Unsolicited Takeover Bid From Titan Minerals
04 January 2020 - 12:00AM
Core Gold Inc. ("
Core Gold" or the
"
Company") (TSX-V: CGLD, OTCQX: CGLDF) announces
that it has today filed a Supplemental Directors' Circular in
response to the increased amended offer (the "
Titan
Offer") set forth in the Notice of Change and Variation
dated December 17, 2019 from Titan Minerals Limited
("
Titan") for all of the issued and outstanding
common shares of Core Gold ("
Core Shares"). On
December 17, 2019, Titan amended the original Titan Offer by
increasing the consideration to 3.1 Titan ordinary shares per Core
Share.
The Board of Directors of Core Gold (the
"Board"), after consultation with its independent
legal advisors, by majority vote, has determined to make NO
RECOMMENDATION as to whether holders of Core Shares
("Core Shareholders") should accept or reject the
Titan Offer. Mr. Keith Piggott declined to approve such a
non-recommendation.
The Board encourages Core Shareholders,
including those who may have already accepted the Titan Offer and
who may lawfully withdraw their deposited Core Shares, to consider
the Titan Offer and the information contained in the Supplemental
Directors' Circular carefully and make their own decisions
regarding whether or not to accept the Titan Offer. Unless
extended, the Titan Offer expires at 9:00 a.m. (Toronto time) on
January 14, 2020.
Reasons for Making No
Recommendation
The reasons why the Board is making NO
RECOMMENDATION to Core Shareholders as to whether to
accept or reject the Titan Offer are as follows:
- Expected Satisfaction of the Minimum Tender
Condition. Titan has disclosed that it has entered into
lock-up agreements with Core Shareholders (the "Locked-Up
Shareholders") that own or control, directly or
indirectly, approximately 81.6 million Core Shares representing
approximately 51.7% of the outstanding Core Shares, excluding any
Core Shares beneficially owned, or over which control or direction
is exercised, by Titan. That means that, in the absence of an event
which would allow the Locked-Up Shareholders not to tender to (or
to withdraw from) the Titan Offer, the minimum tender condition
required by law and the Titan Offer is expected to be satisfied,
and, assuming that all other conditions to the Titan Offer are
satisfied or waived, Titan will be in a position to acquire more
than 50% of the outstanding Core Shares under the Titan Offer. Such
Core Shareholders have already agreed to lock-up (and tender) in
the absence of any recommendation from the Board.
- Independent Fairness Opinion. The Board has
obtained an independent fairness opinion ("Independent
Fairness Opinion") from Fort Capital Partners
("Fort Capital"). Fort Capital is qualified and
independent of all interested parties to the Titan Offer within the
meaning of Part 6 of Multilateral Instrument 61-101 - Protection of
Minority Security Holders in Special Transactions. The
Independent Fairness Opinion is not a recommendation as to how any
Core Shareholder should react with respect to the Titan
Offer. Rather, it was procured by the Board to assist it
in considering the Titan Offer, and is provided to Core
Shareholders in the Supplemental Directors' Circular to assist them
in their consideration of the Titan Offer. In the
Independent Fairness Opinion, Fort Capital has opined that in its
professional judgement, and subject to the assumptions and
qualifications contained in the Independent Fairness Opinion, that
the consideration to be received in the Titan Offer is fair, from a
financial point of view, to Core Shareholders.
- Board Decision Making. The Board considers
that any decision it may make regarding a recommendation will be
perceived as not being impartial or without conflict of interest.
One director who is a shareholder (together with additional Core
Shareholders) has filed a complaint against the Titan Offer with
the British Columbia Securities Commission
("BCSC") seeking to delay or cease trade the Titan
Offer. Persons or entities associated with two other directors have
entered into lock-up agreements with Titan. The fourth director of
Core Gold is its Chief Executive Officer. This leaves a single
director. The actions of the three first-mentioned directors and/or
their associates, may lead to the perception of lack of
impartiality or a conflict of interest relating to the Titan Offer,
although the Board does not consider there to be an actual conflict
of interest as these Directors have acted solely in their capacity
as Core Shareholders. Accordingly, the Board considers it more
appropriate to make NO RECOMMENDATION on the basis
that any determination by the Board may be considered to not have
been impartially made given these events.
- Outstanding Due Diligence. The Board has also
been undertaking an updated due diligence review of Titan and its
business, assets and liabilities, and other changes subsequent to
the termination of the original arrangement with Titan as of July
19, 2019. While the due diligence is largely completed, a complaint
has been filed by one director who is a shareholder (together with
additional Core Shareholders) against the Titan Offer with the BCSC
which raises certain disclosure questions of Titan. The Board has
asked Titan to provide it with its response to the BCSC letter and
to otherwise respond to the disclosure questions raised in the BCSC
letter, which relate to Titan's Vista Plant and its Torrecillas
Project. The Board has not been provided with Titan's response to
the BCSC letter. The Independent Fairness Opinion was delivered as
of December 27, 2019 based on information as of that date. As set
out in the "Assumptions and Limitations" section of the Independent
Fairness Opinion, in the event that there is any material change in
any fact or matter affecting the Independent Fairness Opinion after
the date it was delivered (including as a result of the BCSC
letter), Fort Capital reserves the right to change, modify or
withdraw the Independent Fairness Opinion.
Information regarding both accepting the Titan
Offer and withdrawing from the Titan Offer is contained in the
Supplemental Directors' Circular as well as the Titan Offer. No
Core Shareholder is required to accept or tender their Core Shares
to the Titan Offer. A Core Shareholder is entitled to do nothing
and not accept the Titan Offer.
About Core Gold Inc.
The Company is a Canadian based mining company
involved in the mining, exploration and development of mineral
properties in Ecuador. The Company is currently focused on gold
production at its wholly-owned Dynasty Goldfield Project. Mineral
is treated at the Company's wholly-owned Portovelo treatment plant.
The Company also owns other significant gold exploration projects
including the Linderos and Copper Duke area in southern Ecuador all
of which are on the main Peruvian Andean gold-copper belt extending
into Ecuador.
For further information please
contact:
Mr. Mark Bailey, CEO, DirectorSuite 1201 – 1166
Alberni StreetVancouver, B.C. V6E 3Z3Phone: +1 (604)
345-4822Email: info@coregoldinc.com
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its
Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies
of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the
adequacy or accuracy of this release.
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