NMMC is presently Uzbekistan’s greatest industrial enterprise and one of many world’s main gold producers. Final 12 months, its gold manufacturing reached 2.9 million ounces, making it the fourth largest globally.
The bond providing, mentioned NMMC, marks a landmark achievement for each the corporate and the broader area. It represents the most important orderbook for an issuer from Uzbekistan because the sovereign debut in 2019, peaking at $5.5 billion (over 5.5x oversubscribed), in addition to one of many largest company Notes deal from the CIS since July 2020.
NMMC mentioned it can use to funds to assist its funding applications, in addition to to repay current debt and canopy operational bills. The bond providing will even permit the corporate to refinance current debt at extra enticing charges and longer tenors, it added.
“Our debut notes providing marks the start of what we anticipate will likely be a protracted and fruitful relationship with the worldwide investor group. This milestone is just not solely vital for our firm but in addition for the Republic of Uzbekistan, the place NMMC is a lynchpin of the native economic system,” said Eugene Antonov, NMMC’s first deputy CEO and chief transformation officer.
The word providing follows an earlier funding of $150 million from Mitsubishi UFJ Monetary Group (MUFG), Japan’s largest financial institution, to assist the corporate’s growth plans at its mine operations.
The corporate presently owns a dozen gold mining operations throughout the Navoi and Samarkand areas of Uzbekistan. Essentially the most well-known is the Muruntau open pit mine southwest of the Kyzylkum desert, which was initially developed throughout the Soviet period as a supply of uranium however has since advanced into a big gold mine advanced. NMMC says Muruntau is now acknowledged by geologists as the most important when it comes to gold reserve with an estimated 4,500 tonnes of gold.
Mixed with its different deposits, NMMC’s whole mineral useful resource base is estimated at 148 million oz. of gold.