LONDON, April 02, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Appian Capital Advisory LLP (“Appian”), the investment advisor to long-term value-focused private capital funds that invest in companies in metals, mining, and adjacent industries, is pleased to announce the completion of the sale of Mineração Vale Verde (“MVV”) to Baiyin Nonferrous Group Co., Ltd (“Baiyin Nonferrous”) for an all-cash offer of US$420 million.
Highlights
- Funds advised by Appian have completed an all-cash transaction for the 100% sale of MVV to Baiyin Nonferrous for US$420 million
- Appian has executed its investment thesis and realized significant value for its investors by bringing MVV into production and delivering an attractive mid-scale copper-gold open pit mining operation from greenfield
- Acquired in 2018 with ten employees, MVV began production in May 2021, just three years after its initial investment
- MVV’s stable operations and strong financial performance have been achieved alongside a leading safety track record with zero Lost Time Incidents ('LTI') in the last three years, with over 1050 people now working on-site
- MVV will continue to deliver copper over multiple decades with its efficient operations that position the mine in the middle of the industry cost curve
- Appian’s funds remain well positioned with positive exposure to key trends, including the energy transition
The transaction marks Appian’s 13th successful exit and demonstrates the effectiveness of Appian’s operating model in identifying, acquiring, and optimizing undervalued mining projects using technical arbitrage to create significant value for its investors. This approach is underpinned by Appian’s leading cross-disciplinary team, which includes geologists, engineers, metallurgists, and finance professionals focused on creating value across all aspects of Appian’s portfolio.
Michael W. Scherb, Founder and CEO of Appian, commented: “This transaction further validates Appian’s ability to identify great overlooked assets and use our in-house technical expertise to realize their potential and optimize their value for our investors. It underlines the strategic positioning of Appian’s portfolio to support the growing demand for a reliable supply of high-quality critical minerals.”
Transaction details
The completed transaction encompasses 100% of the equity in MVV owned by the Appian funds. The headline purchase price of US$420 million is on a cash-free, debt-free basis.
Appian is committed to ensuring MVV’s continued success under new ownership and, following the completion, is now providing operational support to Baiyin Nonferrous to assist with the transition and full takeover of the asset.
As part of the Transaction, Baiyin Nonferrous demonstrated its commitment to safety and maintaining MVV’s leading ESG practices, which Appian has implemented in alignment with globally recognized best practices.
Standard Chartered and Citigroup acted as the financial advisors, and Norton Rose Fulbright was the legal advisor to Appian on this Transaction.
MVV acquisition and optimization
The Appian funds acquired MVV, owner of the Serrote greenfield open-pit copper-gold asset located in Alagoas, Brazil, from Aura Minerals in 2018 with ten employees. Appian identified Serrote as a rare standalone, construction-ready, copper project with meaningful precious metal by-product credits that could benefit from its technical arbitrage and asset development strategy.
Following the acquisition, Appian completed a revised Definitive Feasibility Study based on the internal view of a re-scoped project developed during due diligence. This included reducing plant throughput and focusing production on a higher-grade section of the resources with a lower strip ratio. These changes led to a lower initial CAPEX budget of US$243 million vs US$420 million in the original mine plan and reduced operating costs over the life of mine.
Appian actively worked across all aspects of the investment to unlock value. This included building the in-country management team and installing Appian’s best practice operating standards and procedures. Appian also secured a US$140 million financing facility for the project from a syndicate of three international banks and signed favorable offtake contracts with global traders and smelters.
The mine was constructed during the COVID-19 pandemic and brought to production in May 2021. The project was delivered ahead of schedule and under budget by US$48 million, within three years of Appian’s initial acquisition. The ramp-up of commercial operations was completed in Q4 2022. MVV has been in stable operation for two years since and today has over 1050 employees.
MVV has a best-in-class safety record and operates with the highest ESG standards. The project has recorded zero LTIs with over 1.9 million hours worked in the last 12 months, and zero LTIs in the past 36 months. Its Scope 1 and 2 emissions intensity per tonne of copper produced was 1.53 t CO2e/t in 2023, less than half the industry average reported by the International Energy Agency.
In 2024, MVV achieved strong operational and financial results with 18.3kt of copper and 8.2koz of gold produced, generating an EBITDA of US$83.9 million from US$184.4 million of revenue. The mine’s average C1 cash cost in 2024 was US$1.74/lb Cu.
MVV will continue to deliver copper over multiple decades with its efficient operations that position the mine in the middle of the industry cost curve. The mine is well located with access to three ports and Maceió airport. The site is connected to the national grid via a 230kV powerline with access to low-cost, renewable energy, with Brazil’s energy mix being 86% renewable.
MVV is the largest regional exporter in the Alagoas state, accounting for 28.2% of the state's total exports by value. 100% of MVV’s employees are Brazilian, and over 80% are from the local municipalities. MVV has strong support from both the local community and regional authorities. Community initiatives are a core part of the mine’s operations and include providing support for school STEM programs, social projects for female entrepreneurs, and environmental educational courses.
For further information:
Click here to view and download a video detailing the history of MVV.
Appian Capital Advisory LLP:
Andrew Todd, Head of Communications: +44 7990416759 / atodd@appiancapitaladvisory.com
+44 (0)20 7004 0951 / info@appiancapitaladvisory.com
About Appian Capital Advisory LLP
Appian Capital Advisory LLP is the investment advisor to long-term value-focused private capital funds that invest in companies in metals, mining, and adjacent industries.
Appian is a leading investment advisor with global experience across South America, North America, Australia and Africa and a successful track record of supporting companies in metals, mining, and adjacent industries to achieve their development targets, with a global operating portfolio overseeing nearly 5,000 employees.
Appian has a global team of 85 experienced professionals with presences in London, New York, Hong Kong, Toronto, Vancouver, Lima, Belo Horizonte, Montreal, Dubai, Johannesburg and Perth.
For more information, please visit www.appiancapitaladvisory.com, or find us on LinkedIn, Instagram or Twitter/X.
About Baiyin Nonferrous Group Co., Ltd
Baiyin Nonferrous engages in the mining, smelting, processing, and trading of various non-ferrous metals in China. Founded in 1954, Baiyin Nonferrous has operations in China and overseas. In China, they own and operate mines and smelters in Gansu, Shaanxi, Inner Mongolia and other provinces. Their overseas operations include Gold One Group in South Africa and Minera Shouxin in Peru. Globally, Baiyin Nonferrous has a production capacity of 400ktpa copper, 400ktpa lead and zinc, 15tpa gold and 500tpa silver.
A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/3fcfc2de-da91-4535-82c9-4e93cec91491
