Canadian miner Guyana Goldfields Inc yesterday announced that it will be delaying the filing and delivery of certain of its continuous disclosure documents.
In a statement, it said that this was in accordance with Ontario Instrument 51-502 Temporary Exemption from Certain Corporate Finance Requirements of the Ontario Securities Commission (the “Blanket Exemption Order”), which was for the purpose of providing certain filing and other relief to issuers in light of the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic,
The Company, which runs the Aurora Mine in Region Seven is relying on the Blanket Exemption Order in delaying (i) the filing of its annual financial statements and related management’s discussion and analysis (“MD&A”) for the year ended December 31, 2019 (the “Annual Finan-cial Disclosure”), as well as its annual information form in respect of the year ended December 31, 2019 (collectively, the “Required Annual Filings”), and (ii) compliance with the delivery requirements of applicable securities laws relating to the Annual Financial Disclosure.
The Company says it currently intends to make the Required Annual Filings by early May.
Since the filing of the Company’s third quarter 2019 interim financial statements and related MD&A on October 30, 2019, the Company noted that it has disclosed by way of news release the following significant business developments:
the appointment of Alan Pangbourne as the Company’s President and Chief Executive Officer (“CEO”), effective January 1, 2020, as announced by the Company on November 25, 2019;
the disclosure of the Company’s fourth quarter and full year 2019 production figures, together with an anticipated interruption of ore production from the open pit at the Company’s 100% owned Aurora Gold Mine (the “Mine”) located in Guyana, South America, of between four and six months to allow the Company to focus on waste stripping, and that the Company also is exploring financing and strategic alternatives to fund additional waste stripping for its open pit and for underground development, as announced by the Company on February 25, 2020;
the departure of Suresh Kalathil, the Company’s former Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, effective March 5, 2020, as announced by the Company on March 6, 2020;
the temporary suspension by the Company of underground development at the Mine due to the closure of airports here to certain international air travel as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, with no immediate impact on open pit and processing operations, as announced by the Company on March 18, 2020;
the Company becoming aware of the filing on March 18, 2020 of a statement of claim with the Ontario Superior Court of Justice to commence a proposed class action lawsuit against the Company and its former President and CEO, Scott Caldwell, seeking an unspecified amount of damages for certain alleged misrepresentations made by the Company in its public disclosure during December 14, 2017 to October 30, 2019, as announced by the Company on March 23, 2020; and
the Company’s updated mineral resources and mineral reserves estimate as of December 31, 2019, and the completion of a comprehensive mine, production and costs savings plan review, resulting in an updated life of mine plan for the Mine, details of which were announced by the Company on March 27, 2020.
