Montero seeks CAD$ 90,000,000 in Damages from the Tanzanian Government for Expropriation of the Wigu Hill project
28 Julho 2022 - 10:37AM
Montero Mining and Exploration Ltd. (TSX-V: MON)
(“
Montero” or the “
Company”)
provides an update on its fully funded arbitration proceedings
against the United Republic of Tanzania (“Tanzania”) over the
expropriation of the Wigu Hill Rare Earth Element Project before
International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes’
(“
ICSID”), part of the World Bank group.
Montero submitted its Memorial on the Merits
(“Memorial”) to the ICSID arbitral tribunal in May 2022 as per the
time schedule agreed by the parties and the tribunal. The Memorial
contains the basis for compensation to Montero for CAD$ 90 million
including interest up until May 2022, which interest continues to
accrue. The damages claimed are for Tanzania’s unlawful
expropriation and mistreatment of Montero’s investment, this is in
breach of the Agreement between the Governments of Canada and
Tanzania for the Promotion and Reciprocal Protection of Investments
(“BIT”) signed in 2013.
Dr Tony Harwood, President and CEO of Montero
commented: “Montero has submitted a claim to the ICSID for damages
of CAD$ 90 million. The Company has made repeated attempts to work
with Tanzanian Government to reach an amicable settlement without
success, while the discovery and development of the Wigu Hill
project has created significant value for Tanzania. We are
committed to pursuing fair treatment of our shareholders and a
return on our substantial investment of time and money in Tanzania
through a fully funded arbitration process governed by ICSID, a
part of the World Bank.”
Background to ClaimsMontero
commenced exploration activities on the Wigu Hill Rare Earth
Element project in March 2008 under a Prospecting License and spent
over CAD$ 15.5 million on discovery and development of the project.
In 2015 a five-year Retention License was awarded by the Tanzanian
Government on the property. The Wigu Hill Retention License was
expropriated by the Tanzanian Government in 2018 when the Mining
(Local Content) Regulations 2018, cancelled all previously issued
Retention Licenses. Since that time Montero has made repeated
attempts to reach an amicable solution with the Government with no
success.
Montero filed a request for arbitration with the
ICSID on January 8, 2021. On February 9, 2021, ICSID registered
Montero’s request for the institution of arbitration proceedings to
resolve the illegal expropriation matter. The arbitral tribunal was
constituted on November 18, 2021, with the appointment of the
President, and appointees from Montero and Tanzania.
Montero has retained Mr. Thierry Lauriol of
Jeantet AARPI as legal counsel and Dr. Neal Rigby of SRK Consulting
(US) Inc. as quantum expert. Mr. Lauriol is highly experienced in
international arbitration and has an excellent track record of
achieving successful outcomes for clients in Africa. Dr. Rigby has
acted in this capacity and as mining and valuation expert in many
international mining disputes that have been resolved through ICSID
arbitrations. Montero also secured dispute funding from Omni
Bridgeway, a leading global dispute funder.
Montero is one of a number of companies that
have filed arbitration procedures with ICSID against the Government
of Tanzania for the expropriation of Retention Licenses. These
include Winshear Gold Corp. with a claim of CAD$ 124 million
(https://winshear.com) for the loss of the SMP Gold Project and
Indiana Resources Limited with a claim of AUD$ 127 million for the
loss of the Ntaka Hill Nickel Project
(https://indianaresources.com.au).
Next Steps According to the
arbitral tribunal’s Procedural Order No 1 dated February 18, 2022,
Tanzania will respond to Montero’s Memorial by October 2022, after
which a new round of written submissions will follow in Q2 and Q3
2023.
For further information, please see the Montero recent press
releases (PR134 dated 12 April 2022, PR132 dated 29 November 2021
and PR119 dated 8 January 2021) and the ICSID website:
(https://icsid.worldbank.org/services/arbitration/convention/process/overview).
Qualified Person's
StatementThis press release was reviewed and approved by
Mr. Mike Evans, M.Sc. Pr.Sci.Nat., a qualified person for the
purpose of National Instrument 43-101. It has also been reviewed by
Mr Thierry Lauriol, avocat à la cour (Paris, France).
About MonteroMontero is a
junior exploration company focused on finding, exploring, and
advancing globally significant gold, silver, and base metal
deposits in Chile. Montero’s board of directors and management have
an impressive track record of successfully discovering and
advancing precious metal and copper projects. Montero trades on the
TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol MON and has 38,647,485 shares
outstanding.
For more information, contact:Montero
Mining and Exploration Ltd. Dr. Tony
Harwood, President and Chief Executive OfficerE-mail:
ir@monteromining.comTel: +1 416 840 9197 | Fax: +1 866 688
4671www.monteromining.com
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation
Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the
TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or
accuracy of this release.
CAUTIONARY STATEMENT REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING
INFORMATION: This news release includes certain "forward-looking
information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities
laws. Forward looking information includes, but is not limited to,
statements, projections and estimates with respect to the Share
Consolidation. Generally, forward-looking information can be
identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as
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materially from those currently anticipated in such statements for
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competitive developments; technological and operational
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statements. These and other factors should be considered carefully
and accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on
forward-looking information. Montero does not undertake to update
any forward-looking information, except in accordance with
applicable securities laws.
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