European Nickel finance director-linked group buys 50,000 shares in company

European Nickel (LON:ENK, ASX:ENK) said Buprestid Pty Ltd, of which Mark Hanlon, finance director of the company, is a director, trustee and member, bought 50,000 European nickel shares at A$0.36 each.
Following this transaction, Hanlon has a direct and indirect interest in 426,800 shares representing 0.18 percent of the total issued share capital.
In May 2010, the group said that it had negotiated an indicative term sheet and signed a joint mandate letter with Société Générale and UniCredit Bank as the Mandated Lead Arrangers (MLAs) for funding of its Çaldağ nickel laterite project in Turkey.

The debt requirement is for a US$300 million term loan facility and US$25 million overrun facility, of which the MLA's intend to commit US$50 million each.

European Nickel has continued to advance the financing arrangements and expects the MLAs to be ready to approach the debt market with a package of documentation including the facility agreement and major contracts during September 2010.
The company has managed to bring on board a heavyweight investor that will take a US$60 million stake in the miner. Canada’s Hunter Dickinson (HDI) will buy stock in two tranches. It will acquire US$5 million-worth shares in a private placement immediately, followed by the major investment in the final quarter of 2010.
The Çaldağ project is ENK’s flagship asset, offering near-term nickel production and will be one of the largest foreign direct investments in Turkey's mining industry.
With proven JORC reserves of 33.2 million tonnes at 1.13% Ni, the mine is targeting 20,000 tonnes per annum of nickel production over a 14 year life of mine.
Using low cost heap leach technology, European NIckel anticipates a net cash operating cost of US$3.59 per pound of nickel and project capital expenditure of US$277 million, which equates to a capital cost per annual pound of nickel of US$6.12. The project's NPV is US$490 million, at a 10% discount rate, with an internal rate of return of 32.4% at a nickel price of just US$7 per pound.