They're trying to get reorganized and relisted:
Delgratia Mining Corp -
A new name, a new page, but no salting culprit yet
Delgratia Mining Corp DELGF
Shares issued 12,606,728 1899-12-30 close $0
Tuesday Dec 15 1998
by Brent Mudry
With less than $3.5-million (U.S.) cash in hand, a class action settlement agreement and a new name to distance itself from its Nevada salting misfortune, Delgratia hopes to relist on an established stock exchange some time next year. "We believe we are turning a page in the affairs of the company," president Eric Lavarack told shareholders at the company's annual meeting on Tuesday. Mr. Lavarack told the meeting that the name change to Central Minera reflects the company's main focus on Latin American prospects, particularly in Nicaragua. "It is not a matter of hiding; certainly as president of this company, I have nothing to hide," Mr. Lavarack told Ian Matheson, a tireless champion of the debunked Josh property in Nevada. Mr. Lavarack pledged to turn the company around. "We are committed to enhance the value of your shares," said the president.
The main discussion at the meeting centred around the tentative recent class action settlement agreement, which calls for Delgratia to pay $500,000 (U.S.) for plaintiffs' lawyers' expenses, and 2.5 million shares. The money will reimburse lawyers for various pre-and-post-settlement expenses, but not for legal fees. Mr. Lavarack notes that the class action lawyers will get 800,000 to one million shares for their efforts, based on a 30 to 40 per cent fee, yet to be set in court. "We had to get this time-consuming, counter-productive and costly settlement behind us," stated Mr. Lavarack. Company lawyer Hein Poulus praised Delgratia's management for braving the "bleak" year just passed, and persevering in fighting the lawsuit. "They showed great strength of character in sticking to it, instead of bailing out," he told shareholders.
The company president notes that Delgratia had $3.5-million (U.S.) in cash at Sept. 30, down from $4.7-million (U.S.) at June 30. For the fiscal year ended June 30, Delgratia posted $4.7-million (U.S.) of expenditures, including $3.4-million (U.S.) on exploration expenses and $850,000 (U.S.) spent fighting the class action suit. Of this amount, Delgratia spent $450,000 (U.S.) "strictly on legal fees," and the balance of $400,000 (U.S.) on administrative expenses related to the defence, mainly the time of management and staff. Mr. Lavarack expects final court approval of the class action settlement in three to six months, and a further six to 12 months for the claims process to conclude.
With its Josh project and 80 per cent of its Latin American land holdings abandoned, Delgratia now plans to focus on 18 concessions in Nicaragua, covering 500,000 acres, and six concessions in Mexico, covering 60,000 acres. "Our assay procedures include independent sampling by arm's length geologists," assured Mr. Lavarack, who was anxious to distance Centro Minera from Delgratia's troubled past.
Delgratia's annual meeting was a relatively sombre affair, with little more than a dozen attendees showing up. The only questioner was Mr. Matheson, a true believer who remains convinced the Josh project really has oodles of gold in the ground. Vancouver stock promoter Terry Alexander, who had the misfortune of watching his two biggest promotions, Delgratia and Arakis Energy, collapse in controversy, sat silently in the back row. Mr. Matheson, a vocal attendee at last year's meeting, claims he has spent four months explaining the Josh project to FBI agents, who have yet to name any suspects in the case. The Josh supporter is critical of audit geologists who exposed Delgratia's massive gold discovery as a salt-job hoax. Mr. Matheson is particularly upset at consulting geologists Brian Mountford and Morris Beattie, and he has filed a complaint against the pair with the "B.C. engineering society," with a hearing set for Jan. 21.
(c) Copyright 1999 Canjex Publishing Ltd.
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