Tongkah to buy mining company in Philippines

"This decision will diversify THL's risk portfolio throughout Southeast Asia as it continues its 102-year journey as a mining company," managing director Ronald Ng Wai Choi said in a statement to the Stock Exchange of Thailand.

The THL group will use its existing cash flow to subscribe to up to 30 per cent of the shares, which are valued at approximately US$2.5 million (Bt83 million). Coral Resources is now 60-per-cent owned by Rab Special Situations (Master) Fund, a UK hedge fund.

Registered in the Isle of Man and with operations in the Philippines, Coral Resources needs funds for drilling and exploration projects, subject to the approval of investors. Coral Resources has a concession for gold exploration and three more to explore for copper/gold porphyry and molybdenum.

THL said an international independent mining engineering company had indicated geological resources of more than 1 million ounces of gold.

The company said the benefits of the investment to THL were the immediate deployment of selected senior level technical expertise

from Coral Resources to expand the operations of its subsidiary, Tungkum.

Tungkum's production and overall efficiency in the mining operations should improve and it will be assisted in other techniques.