Allana Potash plans Normal Course Issuer Bid for 2012

Allana Potash (TSE:AAA) said Monday that it plans to buy back its common shares through a Normal Course Issuer Bid (NCIB), subject to the approval of the TSX Exchange.
The maximum number of common shares that may be purchased for cancellation under the Normal Course Issuer Bid is 10 percent of the common shares in the public float.
Based on the rough 193.1 million common shares in the public float as at April 16, the maximum number of shares would be around 19.3 million, the company said.
The potash exploration company also noted that the number of its shares in the public float does not include common shares held by company insiders, and is therefore less than the approximate 228.5 million shares issued and outstanding.
Daily purchases will be limited to 410,463 common shares other than block purchase exceptions, Allana added.
The number of common shares bought, and the timing of such purchases will be decided by Allana based on market conditions, stock prices, and the company's cash position, among other factors.
"The Board of Directors of Allana believes that the underlying value of the company is not reflected in the current market price of its common shares...and has thus concluded that the repurchase of common shares pursuant to the proposed NCIB presently constitutes an appropriate use of financial resources and would be in the best interest of Allana shareholders," Allana said in a statement Monday.
Purchases made under the Normal Course Issuer Bid are allowed to start Wednesday, and will terminate on April 17, 2013, or the date on which the maximum number of common shares allowed have been purchased.
The company said that it intends for any shares made under the bid to be cancelled.
Allana Potash is a junior mineral exploration company focused on developing potash mineral properties in Ethiopia and Argentina. It has a 100 percent interest in the well advanced Danakhil Potash Deposit, located in the Danakhil Depression in northern Ethiopia.
A definitive feasibility study for the deposit is due by the end of the year.
Total measured and indicated resources now stand at 673 million tonnes, with an average grade of 18.65% potassium chloride (KCl), with total inferred mineral resources of 596 million tonnes at a grade of 19.96% KCl.
Earlier this month, the company announced that it intersected strong potash mineralization in three holes at its Dallol potash project, prompting it to extend its drill program in the southern boundary of Ethiopia.
Hole 35 intersected 5.7 metres of 31.3% potassium chloride (KCl) in the sylvinite zone and included a higher grade interval of three metres of 39.1% KCl. The hole also intersected 7.5 metres of 20.3% KCl in the underlying kainitite zone.
Hole 36 intersected four metres of 24.6% KCl in the sylvinite zone and 5.1 metres of 20.2% KCl in the kainitite zone.
Hole 37 intersected only the kainitite zone at a depth of 344.5 metres, which returned 5.3 metres of 19.7% KCl.
The preliminary economic assessment on the project, conducted by Ercosplan, yielded, on an after-tax basis, an internal rate of return (IRR) of 36.8 percent and a net present value (NPV) of US$1.85 billion based on a 12 percent discount rate.