Inspiration Mining
Jun. 13, 2011 (Marketwire) --
TORONTO, ONTARIO -- (Marketwire) -- 06/13/11 --
THIS PRESS RELEASE IS NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION TO ANY U.S. NEWS WIRE SERVICE OR FOR DISSEMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES.
URSA Major Minerals Incorporated ("URSA Major" or the "Company") (TSX:UMJ) announces today the filing of a response to the dissident circular (the "Response Letter") filed by Inspiration Mining Corporation and Forbes & Manhattan, Inc. (the "Dissidents"). A full version of the Response Letter can be found on URSA Major's website, at www.ursamajorminerals.com, and on URSA Major's profile page on SEDAR, at www.SEDAR.com.
The Response Letter provides compelling reasons for shareholders to disregard the Dissidents' proxy solicitation and to vote their BLUE proxy today, including that the Dissidents are offering:
-- A Zero-Premium Take-Over Bid: By leveraging their minority stake to seize control of URSA Major, the Dissidents are hoping to grab control of the Company and its treasury, without having to pay a premium to shareholders; -- Unusual Governance and Compensation Practices: Inspiration shareholders have experienced a disastrous decline in their investment, while the Inspiration directors and executives have benefited handsomely. They have rewarded themselves through generous salaries and golden parachutes while the share price of Inspiration has plummeted; and -- A Proven History of Diminished Shareholder Returns: Communications with shareholders have indicated that many are dissatisfied with the performance of a number of public companies that are controlled by the Dissidents and their nominees.
"We have advanced URSA Major to the point where it is the only currently profitable junior nickel mine in Canada, as such the Dissidents are making an opportunistic play for our growing portfolio of profitable assets, notably the Shakespeare mine," stated President and CEO, Richard Sutcliffe. "Contrary to the unsupported allegations of the Dissidents, we have controlled costs to maintain profitability and kept shareholder dilution to a minimum, while achieving mine production."
The Response Letter also details the strengths the current Board offers, providing sound reasoning for shareholders to vote their BLUE proxy to support their Board's continued efforts to increase shareholder value, including:
-- Stronger Share Price Performance: URSA Major's shares have performed substantially better than Inspiration's, especially since early 2009 when stock markets began to recover. -- A Strong Independent Board: Excluding the President & CEO, Richard H. Sutcliffe, each of the five current directors and nominees are independent. Board independence was increased this year with the addition of Jean-Pierre Colin and the Company is further strengthening the independence of the Board by nominating a strong independent director in Ms. Maura Lendon. -- Reasonable Compensation to Management: The current Board and Management believe it is vital that compensation programs align with shareholder interests and URSA Major is dedicated to aligning Board compensation with maximizing long-term shareholder value.
"Our vision is to grow URSA Major into a profitable mid-tier nickel producer through successful exploration, production expansion and project acquisition," said Amar Bhalla, Chairman of the Special Committee. "The Special Committee is focused on working with management to ensure that URSA Major's operational successes are reflected in your share price."
It is important that shareholders vote their BLUE form of proxy to continue the momentum that the current Board of Directors has built and realize the rewards that await.
Shareholders who require assistance voting their BLUE proxy should contact Kingsdale Shareholder Services Inc. at 1-866-851-2743 or email contactus@kingsdaleshareholder.com.
About URSA Major Minerals - URSA Major is a Canadian mining company with a nickel mine and two nickel sulphide projects containing significant NI43-101 compliant nickel and copper reserves and resources. The Company is focused on demonstrating profitable operations at the Shakespeare Mine and growing its nickel, copper and platinum group metal (PGM) deposits through exploration and development, primarily in Ontario, Canada.
This release was prepared by management of the Company who takes full responsibility for its contents. Some statements contained in this release are forward-looking and, therefore, involve uncertainties or risks that could cause actual results to differ materially. Such forward-looking statements include comments regarding mining and milling operations, mineral resource statements and exploration program performance. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially include metal price volatility, economic and political events affecting metal supply and demand, fluctuations in mineralization grade, geological, technical, mining or processing problems, exploration programs and future results of exploration programs, future profitability and production.
The TSX has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.
Contacts:
Amar Bhalla
Chair of the Special Committee
416-928-5104
abhalla@capitinvestment.com
URSA Major Minerals Incorporated
Alison Tullis
Manager of Investor Relations
416-365-0615
atullis@ursamajorminerals.com
Kingsdale Communications Inc.
Beverly Brooks
416-867-2304
bbrooks@kingsdalecommunications.com