CRP $1 million share purchase plan support reflects three years of strong progress

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    13 February 2013

The $1 million support for Chatham Rock Phosphate’s share purchase plan reflects three years of strong progress, Chief Executive Chris Castle said.

The company announced today it is on track to raise $1 million in new capital from its shareholder share purchase plan. The plan closes today at 5pm and allotment of shares is intended to take place early next week.

Mr Castle said the board of CRP is thrilled by progress with the latest capital raising and the enthusiastic response from shareholders. He noted it has been assisted by growth in the share register with the total number of shareholders rising from 300 in September to 430.

The latest milestones have been achieved on the third anniversary of the company being granted its prospecting licence, in February 2010.

In the ensuing period the company has:

·         increased its market value from $2.5 million to $48 million
·         raised $21 million from investors
·         applied for a mining licence in September 2012
·         established a core management team of nine people plus numerous experts
·         built a strong working relationship with a 50-strong team at Boskalis
·         attracted three cornerstone investors (Boskalis, Subsea Investments and Odyssey Marine)
·         strengthened its board with three new directors.

CRP is planning to file its marine consent application in the second quarter of this year.  Planning also continues to list on an overseas exchange and extend contract arrangements with Boskalis in the next few months.
 

Chris Castle

Managing Director
cdc@widespread.co.nz or 021 55 81 85

 

Allotment of Shares

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Chatham Rock Phosphate Limited (NZX: CRP) advises that it has today issued 250,000 ordinary shares at an issue price $0.33 per share to qualified investors. This has resulted in CRP raising approximately $82,500 in new capital.

Chris Castle

Managing Director

Email: chris@crpl.co.nz

Class of security:

 Ordinary shares

ISIN:

NZWENE0003S0

Number issued:

250,000 ordinary shares

Issue price:

$0.33 per ordinary share

Payment in cash:

Yes

Fully paid:

Yes

Percentage of class:

0.192%

Purpose of the issue:

For working capital purposes

Authority for the issue:

Board resolutions

Date of issue:

7 February 2013

Total number of securities on issue following allotments:

130,625,095 ordinary shares

 

CRP expands board with three new directors

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1 February 2013 

Chatham Rock Phosphate is appointing three new directors who will contribute valuable expertise and experience to the company in the run up to applying for a marine consent later this year and on-going financing of operations.

They are senior Boskalis executive Ko de Blaeij, marine mining entrepreneur Robert Goodden and eminent ocean scientist Dr Robin Falconer.

This is the first stage of enlarging the board to reflect the advancement of the project and will supplement the skills of existing directors Jill Hatchwell, Linda Sanders and Managing Director Chris Castle.

Mr. Castle said he was delighted with the strong technical and commercial knowledge the three new directors would contribute.

“All are already closely associated with the project.  Robin’s knowledge of Chatham Rise rock phosphate goes back to the 1970s and he has been central to the operational success and the milestones we have achieved. Robert has had a lifetime working in the marine mining industry and has introduced us to hugely valuable international contacts.  Ko has been a key sponsor within Boskalis and a staunch advocate since the start of the company’s involvement as our partner.”

Ko de Blaeij has worked for Boskalis since 1980 on a vast array of projects all over the world including France, Britain, Australia and Nigeria as well as within the Netherlands.

Until recently he has been Director of Boskalis Offshore guiding offshore pipeline and platform contracts in countries like Norway, Russia, Brazil, Saudi Arabia, India, Indonesia and Australia.  In 2012 he became Director of Boskalis International in the Middle East.  He has had a strong interest in the Chatham project over the past two years and is looking forward to the new role.

Robert Goodden is a member of the technical advisory team for CRP.  He chairs Subsea Minerals, developing business opportunities in marine mining (not associated with CRP cornerstone shareholder Subsea Investments) and before that as Chief Executive worked on a surf zone marine mining project off the coast of Namibia. He was previously on the advisory board for Nautilus Minerals advising on core drilling and sample recovery. 

He founded Seacore Limited, a world class marine drilling and marine construction specialist in 1976 and ran the company for 30 years. During the mid 1970s he developed a world-first underwater core drilling machine based on tension leg platform principles.  He holds a first class degree in mining engineering and was a commissioned officer in 39 Engineer Regiment.

Robin Falconer (PhD, BSc-Hons, BSc) has over 35 years experience in geosphere, atmosphere, and ocean science surveys and research as a university lecturer, government scientist, consultant, industry employee and research group manager; in New Zealand and internationally.    

The work has included marine mineral and oil exploration, seabed surveys, weather analyses, oceanography, environmental studies, Geographic Information Systems, and computer mapping. He has worked at sea off New Zealand, Australia, South Pacific, New Caledonia, China, Antarctica and the Arctic; for New Zealand, US, Canadian, Australian, SE Asian, German and UK companies and research institutes.

He has several years accumulated at sea experience on a wide range of industry and research institute vessels. He is Chair of GEBCO, the joint International Hydrographic Organization and UNESCO Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission organisation that coordinates world ocean bathymetry mapping.

In marine minerals Robin has worked on offshore exploration projects for gold, chromite and phosphate. He has over 70 scientific/technical reports and 40 refereed publications, plus conference and seminar presentations.

Dr Falconer is consultant Chief Scientist for Chatham Rock Phosphate Ltd. He provides input on the practical and management aspects of marine operations including general seabed, oceanographic and environmental mapping; and technical input on all aspects of the project.

The appointments take immediate effect.

For more information contact Chris Castle on 021 55 82 85 or chris@widespread.co.nz or check out www.rockphosphate.co.nz

 

Allotment of Shares

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22 January 2013

Chatham Rock Phosphate Limited (NZX: CRP) advises that it has today issued 150,000 ordinary shares at an issue price $0.33 per share to a qualified investor. This has resulted in CRP raising approximately $49,500 in new capital.

Chris Castle

Managing Director

Email: chris@crpl.co.nz

Class of security:

Ordinary shares

ISIN:

NZWENE0003S0

Number issued:

150,000 ordinary shares

Issue price:

$0.33 per ordinary share

Payment in cash:

Yes

Fully paid:

Yes

Percentage of class:

0.115%

Purpose of the issue:

For working capital purposes

Authority for the issue:

Board resolutions

Date of issue:

22 January 2013

Total number of securities on issue following allotments:

130,110,095 ordinary shares

 

Chatham Rock Phosphate – Share Purchase Plan

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23 January 2013

Chatham Rock Phosphate Limited (NZX: CRP) reminds shareholders that the current share purchase plan offer closes on 13 February 2013. Completed application forms and payment needs to be received by our share registry, Link Market Services, by 5pm that day.

The Board of CRP does not intend to extend the closing date for the share purchase plan.

Under the plan shareholders have the opportunity to subscribe for up to $15,000 of shares at an issue price of $0.33 per share. 

Since the share purchase plan was announced in early December, CRP has already raised approximately $285,000 in new capital through placements to qualified investors at $0.33 per share.

If shareholders have mislaid their application forms, please email chris@crpl.co.nz for a new form. Thank you for your support of the company.

Chris Castle

Managing Director

Email:

chris@crpl.co.nz

 

Likely low cadmium rock phosphate source available in NZ

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Cadmium levels in Chatham Rise rock phosphate are among the lowest in the world, according to Chatham Rock Phosphate Ltd managing director Chris Castle.

Mr Castle said the rock, located on the Chatham Rise seabed showed an average of 2.2 parts per million (expressed as mg/kg of P) from a range of samples gathered by CRP in 2012 from 11 separate locations. The lowest value was 1.3 parts per million with a high of 5.3 parts per million.

This compares with the voluntary limit of 280 parts per million that New Zealand fertiliser companies observe at present for manufactured superphosphate, a limit that is often approached by rock imported from overseas

“The tests we have conducted show our rock phosphate has among the lowest cadmium levels known.  This will be good news for farmers who choose to use our product (either as superphosphate or as direct application rock) when we start production in 2015 and ultimately it will be good for New Zealand food consumers.”

Cadmium is a naturally occurring heavy metal found in New Zealand soils. Excessive levels of cadmium in food can have implications for human health and excessive levels of cadmium in soils can restrict land-use.

The Ministry for Primary Industries is managing the gradual build up of cadmium in New Zealand soils through the cadmium contained in imported phosphate. The cadmium control programme follows research that shows cadmium levels have gradually increased over decades.

The programme recommends farmers and growers work closely with their advisers to determine the most cost effective, efficient and appropriate fertiliser application and land management options.  Since the mid-1990s New Zealand fertiliser manufacturers have blended their high-cadmium phosphate rock with sources lower in cadmium.

Mr Castle said low cadmium levels are one of the environmental benefits of developing a local phosphate resource.  Providing CRP rock phosphate for New Zealand would also reduce New Zealand’s carbon footprint through lower transport costs, and benefit the country’s balance of payments and foreign exchange exposure.  When used as a direct application source of fertiliser, rock phosphate also dramatically reduces soil leaching into waterways.

Cadmium can cause kidney failure and has been statistically associated with an increased risk of cancer and can also cause bone damage. Food is the dominant source of human exposure in the non-smoking population.

A Stuff website report says the build-up of cadmium levels in sheep made MPI ban the export of some offal from animals older than 2-1/2 years.  Testing showed up to 28 percent of sheep kidneys and 20 percent of cattle kidneys sampled between 1989 and 1991 exceeded the maximum residue levels allowed in New Zealand meat of 1 mg per kg.

Health guidelines for soil contamination at the time had a maximum level of 3mg/kg of soil. The natural average level of cadmium in NZ soils is 0.16mg/kg, but when farmland is taken into account, the average is more than double that, 0.35mg/kg, and soils on farms which have had a lot of super phosphate, such as dairy farms, can have as much as 2.52mg/kg.

Dairying areas with high fertiliser use tend to have the highest average contamination, including Taranaki (0.66mg/kg), Waikato (0.60mg/kg) and the Bay of Plenty (0.52mg/kg).

For more information contact Chris Castle on 021 55 82 85 or chris@widespread.co.nz or check out www.rockphosphate.co.nz

 

Allotment of Shares

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7th January 2013

Allotment of Shares

Chatham Rock Phosphate Limited (NZX: CRP) advises that it has today issued 350,455 ordinary shares at an issue price $0.33 per share to qualified investors. This has resulted in CRP raising approximately $115,000 in new capital.

In addition two contractors of the Company (Widespread Portfolios Ltd and Robin Falconer Associates Ltd) have received 94,538 shares, in aggregate, under their respective Contracts for Service at NZD$0.357 per share. These shares represent partial payment for services during the October to December quarter. Pursuant to those contracts for service the issue price of NZ$0.357 per share reflects the 20 day volume weighted average price of a share on the NZAX market to 1 January 2013.

Chris Castle

Managing Director

Class of security:                      Ordinary shares

ISIN:                                         NZWENE0003S0

Number issued:                        444,993 ordinary shares

Issue price:                               $0.33 per ordinary share for 350,455 shares

             $0.357 per ordinary share for 94,538 shares

Payment in cash:                      Yes

Fully paid:                                 Yes

Percentage of class:                  0.344%

Purpose of the issue:                 For working capital purposes and for payment of fees

Authority for the issue:              Board resolutions

Date of issue:                             7 January 2013

Total number of securities        129,960,095 ordinary shares

on issue following allotments: