Two gold mining and exploration companies operating in Colombia have announced plans to merge.
Gran Colombia Gold Corp and Medoro Resources announced that they have entered into an “arrangement agreement” to create a company with a strong presence in an “attractive emerging gold district”, according to a company communique.
The company formed by the merger will focus its efforts in the mid-Cauca gold belt, near the city of Medellin, Antioquia department, where the Gran Colombia gold mine (formerly known as the Frontino gold mine) and the prospective Marmato gold development project are located.
The communique states that one of the benefits will be the increased production of gold, rising from 109,000 gold ounces in 2011 to 630,000 gold ounces in 2016, representing an increase of 42%.
Chief Executive Officer of Gran Colombia Maria Consuelo Araujo stated, “This provides Gran Colombia and Medoro with truly combined resources and strengths not available to us independently … I look forward to building the resources needed at both companies to develop the projects underway, and we forsee no delays to projects now being developed.”
Medoro Resources Ltd is a gold exploration, development and mining company which has been focusing on the Marmato open-pit mine. The company also has concessions in Venezuela and gold exploration properties in Mali.
Gran Colombia Gold Corp is a Canadian based gold and silver exploration and development company which owns five exploration sites in Colombia with a total area of 52,880 acres.
The completion of the merger is subject to conditions, one of them being a vote by shareholders which will take place around the date of June 14.