CANADIAN mining firm, Conquest Resources Limited has sold its Zimbabwe interests in a deal aimed at helping revive the two companies which have not been operational since 2003.
Conquest indirectly owned Africa Gold and Baobab Minerals but recently transferred control of the companies to Mayfair Mining and Minerals in return for a 36.4 percent interest in the UK-based company.
In a statement issued last week, the company said: “The consideration for these assets was 20 million fully paid common shares in the capital of Mayfair having a contractual value of $2 million and representing approximately 36.4 percent of Mayfair's current issued capital.
“Mayfair has covenanted in the purchase and sale agreement to obtain a listing of its shares on a recognized stock exchange or automated quotation system in Canada, the United Kingdom or the United States and to raise a minimum of CAN$500,000 within six months of Closing.”
Chief executive Terence McKillen added: "We are pleased that Mayfair will be reactivating these non-core assets and believe that Mayfair's management team has the vision and the expertise to develop these and other gold assets in Zimbabwe which will maximize the return to Conquest in due course.
“Conquest will continue to focus exclusively on gold exploration in Canada but is retaining its interest in Africa through its equity participation in Mayfair."
A number of mining groups either completely suspended operations or scaled back to care and maintenance over the last decade as the country as buffeted by a serious political and economic crisis while some commodity prices took on knock on the world market.
However the establishment of the coalition government in 2009 and a raft of economic reform measures that included the suspension of the Zimbabwe dollar in preference for more stable foreign currencies helped improve the local operating environment.
Most mining companies have since resumed operations taking advantage a more stable local environment and soaring gold prices on the back of mounting concerns over the US economy and the European Union’s public debt.