Citing weak commodity prices and a difficult market for luring investment capital, Vancouver’s Mercator Minerals (TSX:ML) has hired BMO Capital Markets to advise the company on options for its future, including a potential sale.
According to a press release, alternatives being considered by Mercator Minerals are a sale of the entire company, a portion thereof or a merger with another firm.
The company said it has received numerous “non-binding proposals from a number of interested parties” but did not disclose any further details.
Mercator Minerals owns the Mineral Park Mine in Arizona. Mineral Park is an open-pit mine currently producing copper, molybdenum and silver. The mine has an expected 20-year lifespan.
Measured and indicated resources of the Mineral Park Mine include two billion pounds of copper, 670 million pounds of molybdenum and 75 million ounces of silver.
The company deferred a $4.8 million payment due September 30 on an outstanding $86.8 million debt. The deferred payment will allow Mercator Minerals to withdraw up to $5 million to pay for operations at the Mineral Park Mine.
“We are pleased to have the support of our lenders who recognize Mineral Park’s long-term value despite the near-term operating challenges,” Mercator Bruce president and CEO McLeod said in a press release.
