Steinepreis Paganin is delighted to have advised Lingbao Gold on completion of its acquisition of a 50% plus one share interest in St Barbara Mining Pty Ltd (SBML) (a wholly owned subsidiary of ASX-listed, St Barbara Limited (St Barbara)), which owns the Simberi Gold Operations in Papua New Guinea, for total cash consideration of around A$390 million (comprising A$370 million base cash consideration and A$19 million in adjustments).

In connection with completion of the transaction, both Lingbao and St Barbara approved the Final Investment Decision (FID) to proceed with the US$333 million construction of the New Simberi Gold Project.

Completion of the cross-border transaction was subject to regulatory approvals in PNG and China, with the SP team coordinating with Lingbao and counsel in those jurisdictions to navigate local regulatory requirements.

The Steinepreis Paganin team advising on the transaction was Partner Peter Wall, Senior Associate Nicholas Barclay and Associate Hugo Shervington.

About Lingbao: Lingbao Gold is a major Chinese gold producer which listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKG: 3330) in January 2006 and has a current market capitalisation of approximately A$6 billion. Lingbao operates a fully integrated business model across exploration, mining, beneficiation, smelting, refining and trading of gold, with its asset base located across five Chinese provinces and the Kyrgyz Republic.