19th May 2025 10:53
(Alliance News) - Panthera Resources PLC on Monday said its Australian subsidiary has formally filed a claim seeking USD1.58 billion in damages from the Republic of India, alleging breaches of a bilateral investment treaty related to its stalled Bhukia gold project.
Shares in Panthera Resources were down 11% at 16.00 pence each in London on Monday morning.
The London-based gold explorer and mine developer in West Africa and India said Indo Gold Pty Ltd, or IGPL, has submitted a memorial to the arbitral tribunal overseeing the case, in line with a prior order requiring filing by May 16. The claim amount is net of Indian taxes.
IGPL contends that India violated the 1999 agreement between the government of Australia and the government of India on the promotion and protection of investments. The alleged breaches include expropriation of investment rights and failure to provide fair and equitable treatment.
The dispute centres on IGPL's longstanding involvement in the Bhukia gold project in Rajasthan, India. The company first invested in the project around 2004 through a joint venture with Metal Mining Pvt Ltd. Panthera said repeated delays and an eventual policy change in 2021 that revoked preferential rights to mining licences led to a total loss of IGPL's investment.
IGPL said its rights to a prospecting licence were undermined by actions from the government of Rajasthan. Despite submitting an application and conducting exploratory drilling, the licence was never granted.
India has since auctioned the area to a third party, Panthera noted, awarding rights to Saiyyed Owais Ali under terms including USD60 million in upfront payments, the same amount in performance guarantees, and a 65% state 'mineral share'.
Panthera highlighted various gold resource estimates for the Bhukia project, including a 2006 JORC-compliant resource of 1.74 million ounces of gold and more recent Indian government estimates of up to 7.2 million ounces, alongside copper and cobalt credits.
The company cautioned that there can be no certainty as to the outcome of the arbitration.
In 2023, Panthera secured USD13.6 million in non-recourse litigation funding from LCM Funding SG Pty Ltd, a subsidiary of AIM-listed Litigation Capital Management Ltd, to support the arbitration process.
By Eva Castanedo, Alliance News reporter
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