Tirupati Graphite PLC (LSE:TGR, OTCQX:TGRHF), the mining company, said it will continue trying to invest in Indian group PranaGraf, a fellow graphite miner formerly known as Tirupati Speciality Graphite, now it has dealt with operational challenges at its asset in Madagascar and made a new acquisition in Mozambique.
In 2018, Tirupati and PranaGraf targetted a “business combination agreement” through a share swap deal, but the partnership was blocked by regulators. Subsequently, a top-tier Indian legal advisor was appointed to help outline options moving forward.
Three options were given: continue with trying to obtain regulatory approval, use alternative investment vehicles to develop a stake in PranaGraf or explore commercial arrangements with the Indian group.
Having addressed issues caused by extreme weather conditions at its graphite mine in Madagascar and having completed the acquisition of Suni Resources, the owner of two projects in Mozambique, Tirupati said it is now ready to turn its focus back to PranaGraf.
Shishir Poddar, chairman of Tirupati Graphite, said in a company statement: "The 2018 agreement between Tirupati and PranaGraf to combine the businesses has been frustrated by regulatory restrictions. The many benefits encourage us to continue to seek solutions to enable a combination to be executed. Having completed the acquisition of Suni Resources and arranged the progress of ramp up of production at our Madagascar projects, we are now well placed to focus on this and shall update the markets as we progress further."
Shares in Tirupati are down close to 1% on Monday, having opened at a little over 25.5p.