VANCOUVER, May 19, 2017 /CNW/ - Eco Oro Minerals Corp. ("Eco Oro" or the "Company") (TSX: EOM) responded to a press release issued yesterday by Courtenay Wolfe and Harrington Global Opportunities Fund Ltd. (the "Dissidents") in connection with their ongoing attempts to seize control of the board of directors of Eco Oro (the "Board").
In the release, the Dissidents level false and misleading claims against the Board and management of the Company in an attempt to intimidate the Board and obfuscate the value destructive effects of their ill-conceived campaign. To date, the Dissidents' actions have served only to divide the Board's attention from the Company's top priority, to unlock value for all shareholders.
The Dissidents failed at the outset of their campaign to make a credible alternate business case to shareholders. They then sought to disenfranchise certain shareholders supportive of the Board's plan to unlock value by initiating proceedings at both the Ontario Securities Commission and the British Columbia Supreme Court ("BCSC"). When their forum-shopping exercise ended in the BCSC dismissing the Dissident petition and adjourning the meeting of shareholders, the Dissidents' appealed the decision, forcing the Company to expend additional time and resources answering the appeal.
The Dissidents also appear to be disgruntled that the Board has taken action to protect shareholders from what the Board believes are breaches of securities laws. On May 11, 2017, Eco Oro commenced an application in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice (Commercial List) for, among other things, a declaration that since at least November 2016 some or all of the respondents, Harrington Global Limited, Courtenay Wolfe, Rocco Meliambro, Susan Milton, Stephen Philip, Catherine Wolfe, Joseph Meliambro and Donato Pica have been acting "jointly or in concert" and have violated the early warning and take-over bid requirements under Ontario securities law, and an order directing them to cure their disclosure breaches by disclosing their joint actor status to the market.
Shareholders of Eco Oro should rest assured that the Board will not be intimidated by the Dissidents' threats, nor will it abide the further derailment of the Company's business.
Company Profile
Eco Oro Minerals Corp. is a publicly-traded precious metals exploration and development company with a portfolio of projects in Colombia. Eco Oro has been focused on its wholly-owned, multi-million ounce Angostura gold-silver deposit, located in northeastern Colombia.
