Bluebird Mining shares slide on Korean regulatory setback

(Sharecast News) - Shares in Bluebird Mining Ventures were sliding on Tuesday, as it announced a setback in its efforts to advance gold projects in South Korea after the country's Board of Audit and Inspection (BOAI) rejected its arguments in support of a Mountain Temporary Use Permit (MTUP). The company said it strongly disagreed with the decision, which it believed lacked legal foundation, and had instructed its legal advisors to initiate an administrative lawsuit.

While the BOAI was an administrative rather than judicial body, Bluebird noted that court rulings could apply stricter procedural and substantive standards, though there was no guarantee of a favourable outcome.

At Kochang, the company holds a Mining Right awarded in 2019 and has the backing of both the landowner and local village.

However, the MTUP remained a key outstanding permit, and the joint venture for the project had yet to be triggered.

A fresh MTUP application remained possible if the legal process proved unsuccessful, with Bluebird retaining the option to meet regulatory obligations via a Qualifying Investment.

At Gubong, a separate project also covered by a Mining Right granted in 2019, the company said it had paused joint venture activity due to the lack of sufficient community support, despite having made a Qualifying Investment last year.

Bluebird said it continued to own both projects outright and maintained a low-cost operating structure, while it reviewed its strategic approach to project development in South Korea.

"This is clearly not the news that we had been hoping for; for a project to move forward from the exploration phase to the extractive phase, in any jurisdiction, both community and local government support is vital," said executive director and interim chief executive officer Aidan Bishop.

"Unfortunately, this has remained elusive in Korea and clearly needs a complete rethink as to the best approach.

"Therefore, the gold - and its corresponding value - remains in-situ until such time permissions may be granted."

Bishop said the disappointing news in Korea underscored the importance of having a portfolio of projects, adding that given the recent good news in the Philippines, the focus now firmly shifted there as it was becoming increasingly apparent that was where value was likely to be realised in the nearer term.

"Following today's news, the company will contemplate how best to achieve progress in Korea and its wider strategy in general including the composition of the team required for the future."

At 0905 BST, shares in Bluebird Mining Ventures were down 50.45% at 0.29p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.