HUIZHOU, China, Nov. 29, 2011 /PRNewswire-Asia-FirstCall/ -- Qiao
Xing Universal Resources, Inc. (NASDAQ: XING) ("XING" or the
"Company"), a leading company in the molybdenum mining business as
well as a company with substantial assets in the resources
industry, today announced that it has signed a letter of intent
("LOI") to acquire a 100% equity interest in a company (the "Target
Company") that owns an open-pit marble mine (the "Mine") located in
Guzhang County, Hunan province,
China, from an independent third
party (the "Vendor").
According to the geological technical report, the Mine covers an
area of approximately 0.43 square kilometers and has approximately
60.82 million cubic meters of measured and indicated marble
resources (331 + 332 according to Chinese standards). This marble
reserve is of a high-grade, black wood-grain type, whose supply is
relatively limited in the Chinese market. At present, commercial
mining has yet to commence at the Mine.
Under the terms of the LOI, the cash consideration for the
acquisition will be determined by a third-party appraisal of the
equity value of the Target Company as of October 31, 2011. The Company will pay an upfront
refundable deposit of RMB 400 million
to the Vendor (the "Deposit") to secure an exclusivity period of
120 days in which to complete the proposed acquisition. To secure
the Deposit, the Vendor will pledge 60% of its equity interests in
the Target Company to XING. Upon completion of the proposed
acquisition, the Deposit will be applied towards the cash
consideration. If the proposed acquisition cannot be completed for
any reason, the Vendor will refund the Deposit to XING. The
completion of the proposed acquisition is subject to, amongst other
things, the satisfactory completion of due diligence by the Company
and the signing of a definitive sales and purchase agreement. There
is no guarantee that, after completion of diligence, XING will
proceed with the acquisition on the present terms or at all.
The Company is currently considering various options for
financing the proposed acquisition, including, without limitation,
an intercompany loan from Qiao Xing Mobile Communication Co., Ltd.,
its majority-owned subsidiary listed on the New York Stock Exchange
("QXM").
With the rapid development of the Chinese economy, China has become one of the largest
marble-consuming countries in the world. In the last decade, marble
has been used in large quantities as a decorative material for both
public and luxury residential buildings in China. In addition, marble has also been used
extensively in fine accessories, such as furniture, lamps and
lanterns, and artistic carvings. Presently, China ranks as the largest importer of marble
raw materials in the world, accounting for more than half of the
world's marble raw material imports. In addition, since 2009,
China has also become the largest
marble product-exporting country in the world.
The Company considers the proposed acquisition an excellent
opportunity to diversify into China's exciting stone-material industry,
which is expected to offer significant growth potential.
Separately, the Company announced that it is currently in the
process of reviewing strategic alternatives for its investment in
QXM. With the goal of maximizing shareholder value, the strategic
review will evaluate the Company's long-term strategy against a
range of strategic alternatives for QXM, including strategic
financing opportunities, asset divestitures, privatization, a
spin-off, joint ventures and/or a corporate sale, a merger or other
business combination, among others.
Except as required by law, the Company does not intend to
disclose developments with respect to the strategic review process
until its Board of Directors has approved a definitive transaction
or strategic option. The Company cautions that there are no
guarantees that the strategic alternative review process will
result in a transaction, nor can it guarantee the terms or timing
of such transaction. During the process, the Company does not
intend to disclose any developments regarding the process unless a
definitive agreement is entered into or the Board decides to
terminate the process.
ABOUT QIAO XING UNIVERSAL RESOURCES INC.
Qiao Xing Universal Resources, Inc. is a leading player in the
molybdenum mining industry with substantial assets in the resources
industry. XING focuses on mining and processing rare metal ores and
several strategically important base-metal ores, including
molybdenum, copper lead and zinc. XING currently owns a 100% equity
interest in Balinzuo Banner Xinyuan Mining Co., Ltd. and a 34.53%
equity interest in Chifeng Aolunhua Mining Co., Ltd, as well as the
right to receive 100% of the expected economic residual returns
from Chifeng Haozhou Mining Co., Ltd.
XING was one of the first Chinese companies to be listed on
NASDAQ (in 1999) as one of the leading players in the
telecommunication-terminal product business in China. In 2007, XING made the strategic
decision to diversify into the resources industry. Since then, XING
has made several acquisitions in the resources industry and
divested its fixed-line and budget mobile phone businesses. To
reflect this change, XING changed its corporate name to Qiao Xing
Universal Resources, Inc., effective January
28, 2010.
XING is well positioned to optimize the operation of its mining
business as well to increase its presence in the resources industry
in 2011 and beyond. XING will continue to seek opportunities to
acquire future high potential mining assets. At the same time, XING
is also working to divest its remaining mobile-phone business to
become a pure-play resources company.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements that
involve risks and uncertainties. These include statements about our
expectations, plans, objectives, assumptions, performance or future
events. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements
by terminology such as "anticipate," "estimate," "plans,"
"potential," "projects," "continuing," "ongoing," "expects,"
"management believes," "we believe," "we intend" and similar
expressions. Forward-looking statements include all statements
other than statements of historical facts, such as statements
regarding our ability to optimize the operation of our mining
business, our ability to increase our presence in the resources
industry, opportunities to acquire future mining assets and
opportunities to divest our remaining mobile-phone business.
Readers are cautioned that forward-looking statements are not
guarantees of future performance and are based on estimates,
assumptions and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially
from those projected, anticipated or assumed in the forward-looking
statements. A number of factors could cause actual results to
differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking
statement. Information regarding these factors is included in our
filings with the SEC. We do not undertake any obligation to update
any forward-looking statements. All information provided in this
press release is as of November 29,
2011.
Company
Contact:
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USA IR Agency
Contacts:
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Qiao Xing Mobile Communication
Co., Ltd.
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CCG Investor
Relations
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Lucy Wang, Vice
President
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Ms. Mabel Zhang, Associate
Partner
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Tel: +86 (10)
5731-5638
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+1 (310) 954-1383
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E-mail: wangjinglu@cectelecom.com
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E-mail: mabel.zhang@ccgir.com
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Mr. John
Harmon, Sr.
Account Manager
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+86 (10) 6561
6886 ext. 807
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E-mail: john.harmon@ccgir.com
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Website: www.ccgirasia.com
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SOURCE Qiao Xing Universal Resources, Inc.