Vast Resources (LSE:VAST) announced it has received a binding term sheet for a proposed $10 million debt facility from an unnamed major international commodity trading and natural resources group.
The AIM-quoted mining company said $4 million is earmarked for expansion at its Aprelevka project, with the remaining $6 million going towards working capital.
The facility is repayable over two years, with no capital repayments due until early 2027 and quarterly interest payments, secured against Vast's shareholding in Gulf International Minerals. The lender would also receive warrants over new Vast shares at 0.3p each, plus rights to purchase Aprelevka's concentrate production and first refusal on offtake from Vast's other operations.
Negotiating the facility has pushed back other workstreams, the company saidm noting it has had to extend the longstop date for the transaction to 17 August.
Diamond sales have also underperformed expectations, it noted, with the company deferring polished-stone sales due to weak wholesale demand in Dubai and Antwerp, instead shifting toward retail channels that yield higher per-carat prices but demand more management time.
Vast added that it has sold roughly 123,000 carats of low-quality rough stones at an average $8.50 per carat, generating about $1.05 million, alongside polished sales averaging $3,295 per carat.
The board was blunt about the stakes: without completion of the takeover, it warned, "the company does not have the necessary financial resources to repay its outstanding liabilities" and would likely need to seek insolvency advice.
Shares remain suspended on AIM pending the general meeting to approve the transaction.
News Intelligence what this means for the company
Vast Resources has secured a binding $10 million debt facility term sheet—$4 million for Aprelevka expansion, $6 million for working capital—but the company faces an existential cliff: the board explicitly warned that without completing its Gulf International Minerals reverse takeover, it lacks resources to repay liabilities and would likely seek insolvency advice. The deal deadline has been extended to 17 August, yet shares remain suspended and completion hinges on shareholder approval and finalising definitive documents. Diamond sales have also underperformed, with the company pivoting to retail channels after weak wholesale demand in Dubai and Antwerp.
The debt facility buys time but does not resolve the core risk: Vast is now explicitly dependent on RTO completion for survival. A binding term sheet is progress from the three non-binding term sheets reported earlier, but the lender's security (warrants at 0.3p, offtake rights, and a charge over Gulf shares) reflects high perceived risk. Until shareholders vote and definitive documents close, the company remains in a binary outcome state.
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