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Gabriel Resources Ltd. Corporate Update
ACCESS Newswire · Gabriel Resources Ltd.

In This Article:

LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM / ACCESSWIRE / June 21, 2024 / Gabriel Resources Ltd. (TSXV:GBU) ("Gabriel" or the "Company") announces the following corporate update:

Mineral Tenure Rights

  • In March 2024, Roşia Montană Gold Corporation ("RMGC") submitted an application to the Romanian National Agency for Mineral Resources ("NAMR"). together with the requisite supporting documentation, requesting an extension of the term of the exploitation license for the Roşia Montană Project ("License") for an additional five years, as provided by Romanian law ("LicenseExtension Application").

  • On June 20,2024, RMGC was notified that the NAMR has rejected the License Extension Application.

  • The Company and RMGC strongly disagree with the NAMR's decision and intends to vigorously pursue all legal avenues to reinstate its rights. The decision of the NAMR shows a flagrant disregard for the rule of law and established investment rights and, in the Company's view, is a politically motivated decision to deny RMGC's rights to develop the Roşia Montană Project arbitrarily, without due process, and without compensation.

  • NAMR has sought to justify this decision by alleging, amongst other things, that the documentation submitted in support of the License Extension Application does not satisfy the legal requirements despite being entirely consistent with, and in greater detail than, the extension application filed in 2019 that was approved by the NAMR.

  • The Company strongly believes that the justifications provided by NAMR are pretextual and is evaluating the decision with its professional advisers. The timing of this decision, coming three months following the conclusion of the Company's arbitration claim against Romania, is dubious. As noted above, Gabriel and RMGC will pursue all options to defend and reinstate its legal rights.

  • RMGC also has consistently urged NAMR to issue the exploitation licenses for the two Bucium Projects in accordance with the applications made in 2007 ("Bucium Applications"). Throughout the ICSID arbitration claims filed against the Romanian State ("ICSID Arbitration"), the Romanian State consistently maintained a position, relied upon by the majority in the Arbitral Decision (defined below), that the Bucium Applications remain pending before the NAMR. There remains no response from NAMR in this regard.

ICSID Arbitration

  • On March 8, 2024, the presiding tribunal ("Tribunal") issued a final decision ("Arbitral Decision") dismissing, by a two to one majority, the ICSID Arbitration claims and awarded Romania approximately US$10 million to reimburse legal fees and expenses it had incurred ("Costs Order").

  • The Company strongly disagrees with the Tribunal majority's decision, which it believes is deeply flawed, at odds with the opinion of the dissenting arbitrator and is inconsistent with any objective assessment of the evidence presented. Accordingly, the Company intends to challenge the Arbitral Decision through the annulment process prescribed by the ICSID Convention. The annulment application ("Application") will be filed on or before July 7, 2024.

  • An annulment is not an appeal of the merits of the Arbitral Decision, but a procedure which would, if successful, set aside such Arbitral Decision and extinguish the Costs Order. The annulment process could take 12-24 months to conclude post submission of the Application.