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PDAC-Money returning for mining equity, bankers say
Sun Mar 4, 2012 5:44pm GMT

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* Commodity prices fuel appetite for mine equity

* Financing window started to open in mid-January

* Bankers see a number of mining IPOs in the wings

By Pav Jordan

TORONTO, March 4 (Reuters) - There's a new appetite for equity financing in the global mining sector, as investors tiptoe back into a market that has fretted about funding for the last six months.

Boosted by firm metals prices and a less pessimistic outlook for a still-fragile global economy, many mining companies are again able to sell shares in secondary offerings or tempt investors with an initial public offering.

"The buyers are back, the window is opening again, and there are deals getting done for exploration," said Mike White, president of IBK Capital Corp, a Toronto boutique firm that specializes in equity financing for miners with projects under development.

The next opportunity for cash-hungry companies to strut their stuff comes with this week's Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada convention, known in the industry as PDAC.

If last year's figures are anything to go by, the annual Toronto conference, which opens Sunday, could draw some 26,000 participants, bringing prospective investors together with hundreds of explorers and miners - often small-scale outfits.