(Ecofin Agency) - Lenders of Aureus Mining agreed to postpone, once more, the deadline for payment of first installment, valued at $3.1 million, of loans the firm took to finance operation at its New Liberty gold mine, in Liberia. Initially, the company was to pay on January 31 but on a request, the date was postponed to 4^th of April, then to April 29 and now to May 31.

In order to postpone the deadline, the firm finalized with its consultant SRK Consulting Ltd, an update of a mining plan for New Liberty to provide maximum profit at various levels of price variability for gold. The plan was later submitted to lenders, as a basis for negotiations regarding a schedule for repayment of debts.

In 2013, Aureus Mining signed a loan agreement of $88 million with Merchant Bank (RMB), Nedbank and Export Credit Insurance Corporation of South Africa. It borrowed another $12 million from RMB, and a senior credit tranche of $10 million in 2015.

The New Liberty project is presently at the commercial production stage. Located in the Bea Mountain licence and covering 478 km2, it is fully owned (100%) by Aureus Mining.

Louis-Nino Kansoun