VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwired - Mar 31, 2014) - Further to its news releases of February 18, 2014, and March 3, 2014, Petaquilla Minerals Ltd. (PTQ.TO)(PTQMF)(P7Z.F), and certain of its wholly owned subsidiaries (collectively, "Petaquilla"), announces that it is in discussion with First Quantum Minerals Ltd., and certain of its subsidiaries (collectively, "First Quantum"), with respect to the relationship between Petaquilla and First Quantum in order to ensure the development of the Cobre Panama copper project is optimized.
The companies are currently negotiating a second amendment to a previously executed agreement to reaffirm and restructure their commitments to the effective and efficient development of the Cobre Panama project. The intention of the amendments currently being negotiated is to eliminate any overlap of the current operations of Petaquilla and Cobre Panama. This will involve the purchase of certain selected assets by First Quantum from Petaquilla so that there is a complete separation of the two operations.
The principal basis of the amendment being negotiated is a consolidation of the district around the Cobre Panama project with Petaquilla continuing its gold mining operations at the Molejon concession and First Quantum becoming entitled to all of the adjacent concession areas so that it has outright ownership and control of all of the areas necessary for access, infrastructure, development and expansion of the Cobre Panama project.
