40-F 1 tm213926d1_40f.htm 40-F

 

 

UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549

 

FORM 40-F

 

¨ REGISTRATION STATEMENT PURSUANT TO SECTION 12 OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
  OR
x ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13(a) OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

 

  For the fiscal year ended: December 31, 2020 Commission File Number: 001-35043  

 

GREAT PANTHER MINING LIMITED

(Exact name of Registrant as specified in its charter)

 

British Columbia, Canada   1040   98-1020854
(Province or Other Jurisdiction of
Incorporation or Organization)
  (Primary Standard Industrial
Classification Code)
  (I.R.S. Employer
Identification No.)

 

1330 – 200 Granville Street
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada V6C 1S4
Tel: 604-608-1766

 

(Address and telephone number of Registrant’s principal executive offices)

 

National Registered Agents, Inc.
875 Avenue of the Americas, Suite 501
New York, New York 10001

Tel: 1-800-550-6724

 

(Name, address (including zip code) and telephone number (including
area code) of agent for service in the United States)

 

Securities registered or to be registered pursuant to section 12(b) of the Act:

Title Of Each Class Name Of Each Exchange On Which Registered
   
Common Shares, no par value NYSE American Equities Exchange

 

Securities registered or to be registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: None

 

Securities for which there is a reporting obligation pursuant to Section 15(d) of the Act: None

 

For annual reports, indicate by check mark the information filed with this Form:

x Annual Information Form x Audited Annual Financial Statements

 

Indicate the number of outstanding shares of each of the Company’s classes of capital or common stock as of the close of the period covered by the annual report: 355,032,512 Common Shares as at December 31, 2020

 

Indicate by check mark whether the Company by filing the information contained in this Form is also thereby furnishing the information to the Commission pursuant to Rule 12g3-2(b) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the “Exchange Act”). If “yes” is marked, indicate the file number assigned to the Company in connection with such Rule.

Yes   ¨         No  x

 

Indicate by check mark whether the Company (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the Company was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.

Yes  x         No  ¨

 

Indicate by check mark whether the Company has submitted electronically and posted on its corporate Web site, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the Company was required to submit and post such files).

Yes  ¨         No  ¨          Not applicable  x

 

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an emerging growth company as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

Emerging growth company x

 

If an emerging growth company that prepares its financial statements in accordance with U.S. GAAP, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards† provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ¨

 

 

 

 

 

ANNUAL INFORMATION FORM, AUDITED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND MD&A

 

Great Panther Mining Limited (the “Company”), a Canadian public company whose common shares are listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange (“TSX”) and the NYSE American Equities Exchange (the “NYSE American”). It is a “foreign private issuer” as defined in Rule 3b-4 under the Exchange Act, and is eligible to file this annual report on Form 40-F pursuant to the multi-jurisdictional disclosure system.

 

The following documents of the Company are filed as exhibits to, and incorporated by reference into, this Annual Report:

 

Document Exhibit No.
Annual Information Form of the Company for the year ended December 31, 2020 (the “AIF”) 99.1 (1)
Audited consolidated financial statements of the Company for the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019, including the reports of the auditor with respect thereto 99.2 (1)
Management’s Discussion and Analysis of the Company for the year ended December 31, 2020 (the “MD&A”) 99.3 (1)

  

(1) Filed as an exhibit hereto.

 

Pursuant to Rule 3a12-3 under the Exchange Act, the Company’s equity securities are exempt from sections 14(a), 14(b), 14(c), 14(f) and 16 of the Exchange Act.

 

 

 

 

CAUTIONARY STATEMENT ON FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

 

Certain of the statements and information in this document constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the United States "Private Securities Litigation Reform Act" of 1995 and “forward-looking information” within Canadian securities laws (collectively, “forward-looking statements”). All statements, other than statements of historical fact, addressing activities, events or developments that the Company expects or anticipates will or may occur in the future are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are often, but not always, identified by the words “anticipates”, “believes”, “expects”, “may”, “likely”, “plans”, “intends”, “expects”, “may”, “forecast”, “project”, “budgets”, “guidance”, “targets”, “potential”, and “outlook”, or similar words, or statements that certain events or conditions “may”, “might”, “could”, “can”, “would”, or “will” occur. Forward-looking statements reflect the Company’s current expectations and assumptions and, are subject to a number of known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, which may cause the Company’s actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any anticipated future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements.

 

In particular, this Annual Report on Form 40-F includes forward-looking statements as noted throughout the document. These relate to estimates, forecasts, and statements as to management’s expectations, opinions and assumptions with respect to the future guidance and outlook of production of gold, silver, lead and zinc; profit, operating and capital costs, growth expenditures and cash flows; grade improvements; sales volume and selling prices of products; capital and exploration expenditures; plans, timing, progress, and expectations for the development and mine life of the Company’s mines and projects, including its planned exploration and drilling programs (metres drilled); plans to evaluate future financing opportunities, including the potential to use the at-the-market facilities; the timing of production and the cash and total costs of production; sensitivity of earnings to changes in commodity prices and exchange rates; the impact of foreign currency exchange rates; expenditures to increase or define Mineral Reserves and Mineral Resources; sufficiency of available capital resources; the Company’s Mineral Resource and Mineral Reserve estimates for each of its operations and projects and the assumptions upon which they are based; title to claims; expansion and acquisition plans; and the future plans and expectations for the Company’s properties and operations. Examples of specific information in this Annual Report on Form 40-F, that may constitute forward-looking statements are:

 

Regarding the Tucano Gold Mine (“Tucano”):

 

·expectations regarding the mine life for Tucano, the ability to successfully transition to mining higher grades in 2022 and 2023, and the ability to operate Tucano after 2023 based on converting Mineral Resources into Mineral Reserves within the mine plan;

 

·expectations regarding the ongoing geotechnical control of the Urucum Central South pit (“UCS”) and related slope stability, the ability to continue mining and the ability to continue to include the UCS pit as part of the Mineral Resource and Mineral Reserve Estimate;

 

·expectations regarding the production profile for Tucano and its ability to meet the production and cost guidance for 2021;

 

·expectations regarding Tucano’s significant exploration potential, including regional, and multiple in-mine and near-mine opportunities with the potential to extend the mine life by converting Mineral Resources to Mineral Reserves or discovering new Mineral Resources and its plans to complete drilling in 2021 targeting these opportunities;

 

·plans to continue infill drilling and related expectations and timing regarding the potential for an underground mine and possible plans to make a decision to complete a feasibility study, following completion of an underground targeted drill program;

 

·expectation that we will be successful in our Federal appeal regarding among other matters the ban on the use of cyanide in respect of our Tucano operations; and

 

·expectations regarding capital and operating expenditures at Tucano.

 

 

 

 

Regarding the Guanajuato Mine Complex (“GMC”) which comprises the Guanajuato Mine (“Guanajuato”), the San Ignacio Mine (“San Ignacio”) and the Cata processing plant:

 

·expectations that the Company will maintain operations while it continues to wait for the results of the Comisión Nacional del Agua (“CONAGUA”) evaluation of the technical information submitted for the expansion of the GMC tailings storage facility (lifts 18 and 19) and that the Company can successfully extend is current tailings storage capacity using cyclones through to June 2021 while it awaits CONAGUA approval;

 

·expectations that the current tailings footprint at the GMC can be maintained and can support operations at the GMC until May 2023, which capacity is subject to receipt of further permits and approvals;

 

·expectations that permits associated with the use and expansion of the tailings storage facility at the GMC will be granted in due course and on favourable terms, with no suspension of the GMC operations;

 

·expectations that additional Mineral Resources may be identified at the GMC, including whether or not such Mineral Resources can be defined as Mineral Reserves, and expectations that these Mineral Resources can be mined without first completing a feasibility study and converting these Mineral Resources into Mineral Reserves;

 

·expectations that the Company will receive any additional water use and discharge permits required to maintain operations at the GMC; and

 

·expectations regarding the results of exploration programs at Guanajuato in 2021.

 

Regarding the Topia Mine (“Topia”):

 

·expectations regarding continued mining and grade recoveries at Topia given the absence of Mineral Reserves;

 

·expectations that the Phase II tailings storage facility can be operated as planned on the basis of positive results of monitoring and the availability of the Phase III tailings storage facility, which is expected to be available for use after constructing retaining walls and erosion controls around the base of the facility, without interruption; and

 

·expectations that the Company will be able to achieve compliance with the voluntary environmental audit program authorized by the Procuraduría Federal de Protección al Ambiente in a timely manner and that upon completion of the compliance program, further reviews will not lead to future suspensions of operations.

 

Regarding the Coricancha Mine (“Coricancha”):

 

·expectation that pending proposals for modification of an approved closure plan will conclude with the approval of the Ministry of Energy and Mines, which may also resolve any related fines or penalties;

 

·expectations regarding the availability of funds to restart production, the timing of any production decision, and the ability to restart a commercially viable mine;

 

·expectations regarding the costs to restart Coricancha;

 

·expectations that Coricancha can be restarted and operated on the operating assumptions confirmed by the Bulk Sample Program which are preliminary in nature and are not based on Mineral Resources that have been defined as Mineral Reserves and include Inferred Mineral Resources that are considered too speculative geologically to have the economic considerations applied to them;

 

·expectations regarding recoveries from Nyrstar in relation to its Coricancha indemnification obligations and the potential funding obligations under bonds posted with the Ministry of Energy and Mines as security for closure and reclamation obligations;

 

 

 

 

·opportunities relating to optimization of mining, future exploration and the expansion of the mine life indicated under the preliminary economic assessment which is preliminary in nature and are not based on Mineral Resources that have been defined as Mineral Reserves and include Inferred Mineral Resources that are considered too speculative geologically to have the economic considerations applied to them;

 

·expectations regarding the impact of the Company’s constitutional case concerning the reclamation and remediation of legacy tailings and the consequence of the removal of the injunction; and

 

·expectations regarding the reclamation process, including the timing and cost to complete required reclamation.

 

Regarding general corporate matters:

 

·guidance and outlook for future production, cash cost, all-in sustaining cost, sustaining capital, planned metres of drilling and expenditures, operating costs, capital expenditures and exploration growth costs, as well as the ability of the Company to meet consolidated guidance and individual mine guidance;

 

·expectations that the Company will be able to generate positive cash flow from operations in 2021 prior to capital investments, exploration and evaluation and development costs, and debt repayment obligations, at current metal prices and at current exchange rates for the Brazilian Real (“BRL”) and Mexican Peso (“MXN”) to the United States Dollar (“USD”);

 

·the Company's plans to evaluate and pursue acquisition opportunities to complement its existing portfolio;

 

·expectations that along with its cash flow generated from mining activities, and its current cash and other net working capital, including cash raised from equity and debt financing and the at-the-market facility, that it will have sufficient capital resources to fund capital investments and projects and to repay indebtedness and carry out the programs and plans necessary to maintain and grow operations;

 

·expectations that the Company’s operations will not be impacted materially by government or industry measures to control the spread of COVID-19, including the impact of future orders of federal governments to curtail or cease mining operations in Brazil or Mexico;

 

·expectations with respect to the future anticipated impact of COVID-19 on our operations, assumptions related to the global supply of COVID-19 vaccines and the roll-out in each country, and the effectiveness and results of any vaccines, the lessening or increase in pandemic-related restrictions, and the anticipated rate and timing for the same;

 

·estimates made by management in the preparation of the Company’s financial statements relating to the assessments of provisions for loss and contingent liabilities relating to legal proceedings and the estimation of the carrying value of the Company’s mineral properties;

 

·estimates concerning reclamation and remediation obligations and the assumptions underlying such estimates;

 

·expectations that metallurgical, environmental, permitting, legal, title, taxation, socio-economic, political, social, marketing or other issues will not materially affect the Company’s estimates or Mineral Reserves and Mineral Resources or its future mining plans;

 

·expectations regarding future debt or equity financings, including any sales under the Company’s existing at-the-market facility to improve working capital, fund planned capital investments and exploration programs for its operating mines, for acquisitions and to meet scheduled debt repayment obligations;

 

·expectations regarding access to additional capital to fund further expansion or development plans and general working capital needs; and

 

·expectations in respect of permitting and development activities.

 

 

 

 

These forward-looking statements reflect the Company's current views with respect to future events and are necessarily based upon a number of assumptions that, while considered reasonable by the Company, are inherently subject to significant operational, business, economic and regulatory uncertainties and contingencies. These assumptions include:

 

·the assumptions underlying the Company’s guidance and outlook continuing to be accurate;

 

·continued operations at all three of the Company’s mines for 2021 without significant interruption due to COVID-19 or any other reason;

 

·continued operations at Tucano in accordance with the Company’s mine plan, including the expectations regarding the ongoing geotechnical control of UCS where mining restarted in late October;

 

·the accuracy of the Company’s Mineral Reserve and Mineral Resource estimates and the assumptions upon which they are based;

 

·the Company’s ability to mine Tucano in accordance with the planned production schedule;

 

·ore grades and recoveries;

 

·prices for silver, gold, and base metals remaining as estimated;

 

·currency exchange rates remaining as estimated;

 

·capital, decommissioning and reclamation estimates;

 

·the Company will not be required to further impair Tucano as the current open-pit Mineral Reserves are depleted through mining;

 

·prices for energy inputs, labour, materials, supplies and services (including transportation);

 

·national and international transportation arrangements to deliver Tucano’s gold doré to international refineries continue to remain available, despite inherent risks due to COVID-19;

 

·international refineries that the Company uses continue to operate and refine the Company’s gold doré, and in a timely manner such that the Company is able to realize revenue from the sale of its refined metal in the timeframe anticipated, despite inherent risks due to COVID-19;

 

·all necessary permits, licenses and regulatory approvals for the Company’s operations are received in a timely manner on favourable terms, including the granting of permits for the GMC tailing storage facility in time and without condition to prevent interruption to operations;

 

·the Company’s ability to comply with environmental, health and safety laws;

 

·the Topia Phase III tailings storage facility will be available when the Phase II tailings storage facility is no longer available;

 

·Tucano will be able to continue to use cyanide in its operations;

 

·management’s estimates in connection with the assessment of provisions for loss and contingent liabilities relating to legal proceedings will not differ materially from the ultimate loss or damages incurred by the Company;

 

·the Company will be able to meet its production forecasts and generate the anticipated cash flow from operations for 2021 with the result that the Company will be able to meet its scheduled debt payments when due;

 

·management’s estimates regarding the carrying value of its mineral properties will not change in future financial periods, such that it would result in further write-downs and consequential impairment loss;

 

·the accuracy of the information included or implied in the various published technical reports;

 

 

 

 

·the geological, operational and price assumptions on which these technical reports are based;

 

·conditions in the financial markets;

 

·the ability to attract and retain skilled staff;

 

·the ability to procure equipment and operating supplies and that there are no unanticipated material variations in the cost of energy or supplies;

 

·the ability to secure contracts for the sale of the Company’s products (metals concentrates and gold doré);

 

·the execution and outcome of current or future exploration activities;

 

·the ability to obtain adequate financing for planned activities and to complete further exploration programs;

 

·the Company will not experience project delays and cost overruns, or unanticipated excessive operating costs and expenses;

 

·the Company’s ability to maintain adequate internal controls over financial reporting, and disclosure controls and procedures;

 

·the ability of contractors to perform their contractual obligations; and

 

·operations not being disrupted by issues such as workforce shortages, mechanical failures, labour or social disturbances, illegal occupations or mining, seismic events, and adverse weather conditions.

 

These forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements to be materially different. Such factors include, among others, risks and uncertainties relating to:

 

·open pit mining operations at Tucano have a limited established mine life and the Company may not be able to extend the mine life of Tucano open pit operations beyond 2023 as anticipated or maintain production levels consistent with past production as Mineral Reserves are depleted;

 

·the Company may experience an increase in COVID-19 infection amongst its employees and contractors even with the adoption of enhanced safety protocols and safeguards;

 

·the Company cannot provide assurance that there will not be interruptions to its operations in the future as a result of COVID-19 including: (i) the impact restrictions that governments may impose or the Company voluntarily imposes to address COVID-19, which if sustained or resulted in a significant curtailment could have a material adverse impact on the Company’s production, revenue and financial condition and may materially impact the Company’s ability to meet its production guidance included herein and complete near-mine and regional exploration plans at Tucano; (ii) shortages of employees; (iii) unavailability of contractors and subcontractors; (iv) interruption of supplies and the provision of services from third parties upon which the Company relies; (v) restrictions that governments impose to address the COVID-19 outbreak; (vi) disruptions in transportation services that could impact the Company’s ability to deliver gold doré and metal concentrates to refineries; (vii) restrictions that the Company and its contractors and subcontractors impose to ensure the safety of employees and others; (viii) restrictions on operations imposed by governmental authorities; (ix) delays in permitting; and (x) the Company may not be able to modify its operations in order to maintain production, including the availability to modify work shifts at Tucano, if necessary;

 

·the Company’s ability to appropriately capitalize and finance its operations, including the risk that the Company is: (i) unable to renew or extend existing credit facilities that become due which may increase the need to raise new external sources of capital; or (ii) unable to access sources of capital which could adversely impact the Company’s liquidity and require the Company to curtail capital and exploration program, and other discretionary expenditures;

 

 

 

 

·planned exploration activities may not result in the conversion of existing Mineral Resources into Mineral Reserves or discovery of new Mineral Resources;

 

·the Company may be unable to meet its production forecasts or to generate the anticipated cash flows from operations, and as a result, the Company may be unable to meet its scheduled debt payments when due or to meet financial covenants to which the Company is subject;

 

·the inherent risk that estimates of Mineral Reserves and Resources may not be accurate and accordingly that mine production and recovery will not be as estimated or predicted;

 

·gold, silver and base metal prices may decline or may be less than forecasted or may experience unpredictable fluctuations;

 

·fluctuations in currency exchange rates (including the USD to BRL exchange rate) may increase costs of operations;

 

·even though a geotechnical consultant has given the approval to restart mining the UCS pit, there is no assurance that the Company will be able to continue mining through to the first quarter of 2022 as planned and be able to access the UCS Mineral Reserves which may adversely impact the Company’s production plans, future revenue and financial condition;

 

·challenging operational viability of Mexican operations;

 

·operational and physical risks inherent in mining operations (including pit wall collapses, tailings storage facility failures, environmental accidents and hazards, industrial accidents, equipment breakdown, unusual or unexpected geological or structural formations, cave-ins, flooding and severe weather) may result in unforeseen costs, shutdowns, delays in production and exposure to liability;

 

·there is no assurance that the Company will be able to identify or complete acquisition opportunities or, if completed that such acquisitions will be accretive to the Company;

 

·management’s estimates regarding the carrying value of its mineral properties may be subject to change in future financial periods, which may result in further write-downs and consequential impairment loss;

 

·management’s estimates in connection with the assessment of provisions for loss and contingent liabilities relating to legal proceedings may differ materially from the ultimate loss or damages incurred by the Company;

 

·potential political and social risks involving Great Panther’s operations in a foreign jurisdiction;

 

·the potential for unexpected and excessive costs and expenses and the possibility of project delays;

 

·employee and contractor relations;

 

·relationships with, and claims by, local communities;

 

·the Company’s ability to obtain and maintain all necessary permits, licenses and regulatory approvals in a timely manner and on favourable terms, including the granting of permits for the expansion of the GMC tailings storage facility in time and without conditions which if not granted or conditioned could result in an interruption of operations and the ability to maintain those permits, licences and regulatory approvals and the conditions required thereunder;

 

·changes in laws, regulations and government practices in the jurisdictions in which the Company operates, including the potential labour reforms in Mexico which could increase costs of our operations, the impacts of which could be significant;

 

·legal restrictions related to mining;

 

 

 

 

·the inability to operate the Topia Phase II tailings storage facility as planned, or to commence stacking at Topia Phase III when Phase II tailings storage facility is no longer available;

 

·diminishing quantities or grades of mineralization as properties are mined;

 

·operating or technical difficulties in mineral exploration and changes in project parameters as plans continue to be refined;

 

·acts of foreign governments;

 

·political risk;

 

·labour or social unrest;

 

·illegal mining, including the potential for safety and security risks related thereto;

 

·uncertainties related to title to the Company’s mineral properties and the surface rights thereon, including the Company’s ability to acquire, economically acquire or maintain/renew, the surface rights to certain of the Company’s exploration and development projects, as well as the surface rights associated with the Company’s operations and facilities;

 

·unanticipated operational difficulties due to adverse weather conditions, failure of plant or mine equipment and unanticipated events related to health, safety, and environmental matters;

 

·uncertainty of revenue, cash flows and profitability, the potential to achieve any particular level of recovery, the costs of such recovery, the rates of production and costs of production, where production decisions are not based on any feasibility studies of Mineral Reserves demonstrating economic and technical viability;

 

·cash flows may vary and the Company’s business may not generate sufficient cash flow from operations to enable it to satisfy its debt and other obligations;

 

·an unfavourable decision by the Ministry of Energy and Mines with respect to the proposed modification to the Coricancha closure plan;

 

·fines, penalties, regulatory actions or charges against the Company’s Coricancha subsidiary arising from the removal of the injunction, including the potential for cumulative fines and penalties outside the control of the Company and its subsidiary;

 

·reclamation costs exceed the amounts estimated and exceed the amount which Nyrstar has agreed to reimburse;

 

·failure of counterparties to perform their contractual obligations, including risk that Nyrstar is unable to fund its indemnity obligations under the agreements related to the acquisition of Coricancha, as such have been amended from time to time, and the guarantors thereunder do not have the necessary financial resources to discharge their obligations under the guarantees;

 

·litigation risk, including the risk that the Company will not be successful in resolving its existing litigation or that it will become subject to further litigation in the future;

 

·certain of the Company’s directors and officers may continue to be involved in a wide range of business activities through their direct and indirect participation in corporations, partnerships or joint arrangements, some of which are in the same business as the Company and situations may arise in connection with potential acquisitions and investments where the other interests of these directors and officers may conflict with the interests of the Company;

 

·deterioration of general economic conditions, including increased volatility and global financial conditions; and

 

·the Company’s ability to operate as anticipated,

 

and other risks and uncertainties, including those described in respect of Great Panther in its most recent Annual Information Form for the year ended December 31, 2020, and material change reports filed with the Canadian Securities Administrators available at www.sedar.com and reports on Form 40-F and Form 6-K filed with the SEC and available at www.sec.gov.

 

 

 

 

This list is not exhaustive of the factors that may affect any of the Company’s forward-looking statements or information. Forward-looking statements are statements about the future and are inherently uncertain, and actual achievements of the Company or other future events or conditions may differ materially from those reflected in the forward-looking statements or information.

 

The Company’s forward-looking statements are based on the assumptions, beliefs, expectations and opinions of management as of the date of this Annual Report on Form 40-F. The Company will update forward-looking statements and information if and when, and to the extent required by applicable securities laws. Readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements contained herein are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement.

 

Further information can be found in the section entitled "Risk Factors" in the most recent Annual Information Form for the year ended December 31, 2020 on file with the Canadian securities regulatory authorities. Readers are advised to carefully review and consider the risk factors identified in this Annual Report on Form 40-F/AIF for a discussion of the factors that could cause the Company’s actual results, performance and achievements to be materially different from any anticipated future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. It is recommended that prospective investors consult the complete discussion of the Company’s business, financial condition and prospects that is included in this Annual Report on Form 40-F.

 

 

CAUTIONARY NOTE TO UNITED STATES INVESTORS CONCERNING
ESTIMATES OF MEASURED, INDICATED AND INFERRED RESOURCES

 

As a British Columbia corporation and a “reporting issuer” under Canadian securities laws, the Company is required to provide disclosure regarding its mineral properties in accordance with Canadian National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects (“NI 43-101”). NI 43-101 is a rule developed by the Canadian Securities Administrators that establishes standards for all public disclosure an issuer makes of scientific and technical information concerning mineral projects. In accordance with NI 43-101, the Company uses the terms Mineral Reserves and Resources as they are defined in accordance with the CIM Definition Standards on Mineral Reserves and Resources (the “CIM Definition Standards”) adopted by the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum.

 

The SEC has adopted amendments to its disclosure rules to modernize the mineral property disclosure requirements for issuers whose securities are registered with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) under the U.S. Exchange Act. These amendments became effective February 25, 2019 (the “SEC Modernization Rules”). The SEC Modernization Rules have replaced the historical property disclosure requirements for mining registrants that were included in SEC Industry Guide 7 (“Guide 7”), which have been rescinded. As a foreign private issuer that is eligible to file reports with the SEC pursuant to the multi-jurisdictional disclosure system (the “MJDS”), the Registrant is not required to provide disclosure on its mineral properties under the SEC Modernization Rules and will continue to provide disclosure under NI 43-101. If the Registrant ceases to be a foreign private issuer or loses its eligibility to file its annual report on Form 40-F pursuant to the MJDS, then the Registrant will be subject to the SEC Modernization Rules, which differ from the requirements of NI 43-101.

 

The SEC Modernization Rules include the adoption of terms describing Mineral Reserves and Mineral Resources that are substantially similar to the corresponding terms under the CIM Definition Standards. As a result of the adoption of the SEC Modernization Rules, SEC will recognizes estimates of Measured Mineral Resources, Indicated Mineral Resources and Inferred Mineral Resources. In addition, the SEC has amended its definitions of Proven Mineral Reserves and Probable Mineral Reserves to be substantially similar to the corresponding CIM Definition Standards.

 

United States investors are cautioned that while the above terms are substantially similar to CIM Definitions, there are differences in the definitions under the SEC Modernization Rules and the CIM Definition Standards. Accordingly, there is no assurance any Mineral Reserves or Mineral Resources that the Company may report as Proven Reserves, Probable Reserves, Measured Mineral Resources, Indicated Mineral Resources and Inferred Mineral Resources under NI 43-101 would be the same had the Company prepared the reserve or resource estimates under the standards adopted under the SEC Modernization Rules.

 

United States investors are also cautioned that while the SEC will now recognize Measured Mineral Resources, Indicated Mineral Resources and Inferred Mineral Resources, investors should not to assume that any part or all of the mineralization in these categories will ever be converted into a higher category of Mineral Resources or into Mineral Reserves. Mineralization described using these terms has a greater amount of uncertainty as to their existence and feasibility than mineralization that has been characterized as reserves. Accordingly, investors are cautioned not to assume that any Measured Mineral Resources, Indicated Mineral Resources, or Inferred Mineral Resources that the Company reports are or will be economically or legally mineable.

 

Further, Inferred Mineral Resources have a greater amount of uncertainty as to their existence and as to whether they can be mined legally or economically. Therefore, United States investors are also cautioned not to assume that all or any part of the Inferred Mineral Resources exist. In accordance with Canadian rules, estimates of Inferred Mineral Resources cannot form the basis of feasibility or other economic studies, except in limited circumstances where permitted under NI 43-101.

 

 

 

 

For the above reasons, information contained in this Annual Report and the documents incorporated by reference herein containing descriptions of our mineral deposits may not be comparable to similar information made public by U.S. companies subject to the reporting and disclosure requirements under the United States federal securities laws and the rules and regulations thereunder.

 

In addition, disclosure of “contained ounces” is permitted disclosure under Canadian regulations; however, the SEC has historically only permitted issuers to report mineralization as in place tonnage and grade without reference to unit measures.

 

 NOTE TO UNITED STATES READERS REGARDING DIFFERENCES
BETWEEN UNITED STATES AND CANADIAN REPORTING PRACTICES

 

The Company is permitted to prepare this Annual Report in accordance with Canadian disclosure requirements, which are different from those of the United States. The Company prepares its consolidated financial statements in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards, as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board, which differ in certain respects from United States generally accepted accounting principles (“US GAAP”) and from practices prescribed by the SEC. Therefore, the Company’s financial statements incorporated by reference in this Annual Report may not be comparable to financial statements prepared in accordance with US GAAP.

 

CURRENCY

 

Unless otherwise indicated, all dollar amounts in this Annual Report are in United States dollars. The exchange rate of United States dollars into Canadian dollars on December 31, 2020 (the last business day of the year), based upon the daily average rate published by the Bank of Canada, was US$1.00=CDN$1.2732. The exchange rate of United States dollars into Canadian dollars, on March 11, 2021, based upon the daily average rate as published by the Bank of Canada, was US$1.00=CDN$1.2561.

 

DISCLOSURE CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES

 

Disclosure Controls and Procedures

 

Disclosure controls and procedures are defined in Rule 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) under the Exchange Act to mean controls and other procedures of an issuer that are designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed by the issuer in the reports that it files or submits under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized and reported, within the time periods specified in the SEC’s rules and forms. Disclosure controls and procedures include, without limitation, controls and procedures designed to ensure that such information is accumulated and communicated to the issuer’s management, including its principal executive and principal financial officers, or persons performing similar functions, as appropriate to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure.

 

Management’s Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures

 

At the end of the period covered by this Annual Report on Form 40-F, being the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020, an evaluation was carried out under the supervision of and with the participation of the Company’s management (“Management”), including the President and Chief Executive Officer (“CEO”) and Chief Financial Officer (“CFO”), of the effectiveness of the design and operations of the Company’s disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rule 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) under the Exchange Act). Based on that evaluation the CEO and the CFO have concluded that, as of the end of the period covered by this Annual Report, the Company’s disclosure controls and procedures were effective to give reasonable assurance that the information required to be disclosed by the Company in reports that it files or submits to the SEC under the Exchange Act is:

 

 

 

 

  · recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified in the SEC’s rules and forms; and

 

  · accumulated and communicated to Management, including the CEO and CFO, as appropriate, to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure.

 

INTERNAL CONTROL OVER FINANCIAL REPORTING

 

Internal Control over Financial Reporting

 

Internal control over financial reporting is defined in Rule 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f) of the Exchange Act as a process designed by, or under the supervision of, the issuer’s principal executive and principal financial officers and effected by the issuer’s board of directors, management and other personnel, to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles and includes those policies and procedures that:

 

  · pertain to the maintenance of records that, in reasonable detail, accurately and fairly reflect the transactions and dispositions of the assets of the Company;

 

  · provide reasonable assurance that transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, and that receipts and expenditures of the Company are being made only in accordance with authorizations of management and directors of the Company; and

 

  · provide reasonable assurance regarding prevention or timely detection of unauthorized acquisition, use or disposition of the Company’s assets that may have a material effect on the financial statements.

 

The Company’s internal control system is designed to provide reasonable assurance to Management and the board of directors (“Board of Directors”) regarding the preparation and fair presentation of published financial statements. All internal control systems, no matter how well designed, have inherent limitations. Therefore, even those systems determined to be effective can provide only reasonable assurance with respect to financial statement preparation and presentation. Also, projections of any evaluation of effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting to future periods are subject to risk that controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions, or that the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate.

 

Management’s Assessment of Internal Control over Financial Reporting

 

The Company’s Management is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting. Management conducted an evaluation of the effectiveness of the Company’s internal control over financial reporting based on the framework in Internal Control – Integrated Framework (2013) issued by The Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (“COSO”). Based on this evaluation, Management concluded that the Company’s internal control over financial reporting was effective as of December 31, 2020.

 

The Board of Directors is responsible for ensuring that Management fulfills its responsibilities. The Company’ audit committee (“Audit Committee”) fulfills its role of ensuring the integrity of the reported information through its review of the interim and annual financial statements. Management reviewed the results of their assessment with the Company’s Audit Committee.

 

Attestation Report

 

KPMG LLP has audited the Company’s internal control over financial reporting and has issued an attestation report on the Company’s internal control over financial reporting which is included with the Company’s audited financial statements which are attached as Exhibit 99.2 to this Annual Report on Form 40-F.

 

Changes in Internal Control over Financial Reporting

 

Disclosure controls and procedures within the Company have been designed to provide reasonable assurance that all relevant information is identified to its CEO and its CFO to ensure appropriate and timely decisions are made regarding public disclosure. Internal controls over financial reporting have been designed by management under the supervision of, and with the participation of the Company's CEO and CFO, to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of the Company’s financial reporting and its preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board. There have been no changes that occurred during the year ended December 31, 2020 that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, internal controls over financial reporting.

 

 

 

 

For accounting purposes, on March 5, 2019, the Company completed its acquisition of Beadell Resources Limited, a gold mining company previously listed on the Australian Securities Exchange. Beadell owned and operated the Tucano Gold Mine, (“Tucano”), which produces gold doré and is located in Amapá State in northern Brazil. As permitted by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and applicable Canadian Securities Commission rules related to business acquisitions, the Company excluded Tucano from its annual assessment of internal controls over financial reporting for the year ending December 31, 2019. For the year ended December 31, 2020, Tucano was included in management's annual assessment of internal controls over financial reporting.

 

NOTICES PURSUANT TO REGULATION BTR

 

The Company did not send any notices required by Rule 104 of Regulation BTR during the year ended December 31, 2020 concerning any equity security subject to a blackout period under Rule 101 of Regulation BTR.

 

CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

 

The Company is subject to corporate governance requirements prescribed under applicable Canadian securities laws, rules and policies. The Company is also subject to corporate governance requirements prescribed by the listing standards of the NYSE American, and the rules and regulations promulgated by the SEC under the Exchange Act (including those applicable rules and regulations mandated by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002).

 

Section 110 of the NYSE American Company Guide permits NYSE American to consider the laws, customs and practices of foreign issuers in relaxing certain NYSE American listing criteria, and to grant exemptions from NYSE American listing criteria based on these considerations. A company seeking relief under these provisions is required to provide written certification from independent local counsel that the non-complying practice is not prohibited by home country law.

 

Section 123 of the NYSE American Company Guide recommends that the quorum for meetings of shareholders of a listed company be not less than 33-1/3% of the issued and outstanding shares entitled to vote at a meeting of shareholders. Upon listing, the Company received an exemption from this listing standard. The Company’s quorum requirement is specified in its corporate charter as two persons who are, or who represent by proxy, shareholders.

 

Section 713 of the NYSE American Company Guide requires that the Company obtain the approval of its shareholders for share issuances equal to 20 percent or more of presently outstanding shares for a price which is less than the greater of book or market value of the shares. This requirement does not apply to public offerings. There are no such requirements under British Columbia corporate law. However, under the rules of the Toronto Stock Exchange (the “TSX”), the Company’s home stock exchange, shareholder approval is required for certain issuances of shares that (i) materially affect control of the Company, or (ii) provide consideration to insiders in aggregate of 10% or greater of the market capitalization of the Company in transactions that have not been negotiated at arm’s length.  Shareholder approval is also required under TSX rules for private placements in circumstances where (i) the aggregate number of listed securities issuable is greater than 25% of the number of securities of the listed issuer which are outstanding, on a non-diluted basis, prior to the date of closing of the transaction if the price per security is less than the market price, and (ii) there are issuances during any six month period to insiders for listed securities or options, rights or other entitlements to listed securities greater than 10% of the number of securities of the listed issuer which are outstanding, on a non-diluted basis, prior to the date of the closing of the first private placement to an insider during the six month period. The Company intends to seek a waiver from NYSE American’s section 713 requirements should a dilutive private placement financing trigger the NYSE American shareholders’ approval requirement in circumstances where the same financing does not trigger such a requirement under British Columbia law or under TSX rules.

 

 

 

 

The Company believes that there are otherwise no significant differences between its corporate governance policies and those required to be followed by United States domestic issuers listed on the NYSE American. In particular, in addition to having a separate Audit Committee, the Company’s Board of Directors has established: (i) a separately-designated People & Culture Committee that materially meets the requirements for a compensation committee under section 805 of the NYSE American Company Guide, as currently in force; and (ii) a separately-designated Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee that materially meets the requirements for a nominating committee under section 804 of the NYSE American Company Guide, a currently in force.

 

Copies of the Company’s corporate governance materials are available on the Company’s website at www.greatpanther.com (under the Corporate/Governance/Governance and Policies tab). In addition, the Company is required by National Instrument 58-101 of the Canadian Securities Administrators, Disclosure of Corporate Governance Practices, to describe its practices and policies with regard to corporate governance in management information circulars that are furnished to the Company’s shareholders in connection with annual meetings of shareholders.

 

AUDIT COMMITTEE

 

Composition of the Audit Committee

 

The Company's Board of Directors has a separately designated standing Audit Committee established in accordance with Section 3(a)(58)(A) of the Exchange Act and Section 803(B)(2) of the NYSE American Company Guide. The Company's Audit Committee comprises three directors that the Board of Directors have determined are independent as determined under each of Rule 10A-3 under the Exchange Act and Section 803(A) of the "NYSE American" Company Guide:

 

  · Elise Rees (Chair)
  · Joseph Gallucci
  · R. W. (Bob) Garnett
  · John Jennings

 

All four members of the Audit Committee are financially literate, meaning they are able to read and understand the Company's financial statements and to understand the breadth and level of complexity of the issues that can reasonably be expected to be raised by the Company's financial statements. The Audit Committee meets the composition requirements set forth by Section 803(B)(2) of NYSE American Company Guide.

 

Audit Committee Charter

 

The full text of the Charter of the Audit Committee is attached as Schedule A to the Company's Annual Information Form which is filed as Exhibit 99.1 to this Annual Report. The Charter of the Audit Committee is also available on the Company’s website at www.greatpanther.com (under the links Corporate > Corporate Governance and Policies).

 

Audit Committee Financial Expert

 

The Company’s Board of Directors has determined that both Elise Rees and Bob Garnett, are audit committee financial experts (as that term is defined in General Instruction B(8) of Form 40-F).

 

CODE OF BUSINESS CONDUCT AND ETHICS

 

Adoption of Code of Ethics

 

The Company has adopted a Code of Business Conduct and Ethics (the “Code of Ethics”) for all its directors, executive officers and employees. The Code of Ethics materially complies with Section 807 of the NYSE American Company Guide. The Code of Ethics meets the requirements for a “code of ethics” within the meaning of that term in Form 40-F. The text of the Code of Ethics is posted on the Company's website at www.greatpanther.com (under the links Corporate > Corporate Governance and Policies).

 

 

 

 

Amendments or Waivers

 

During the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020, the Company did not substantively amend, waive or implicitly waive any provision of the Code of Ethics with respect to any of the directors, executive officers or employees subject to it.

 

To the extent that the Company's board or a board committee determines to grant any waiver of the Code of Ethics for an executive officer or director, the commentary to Section 807 of the NYSE American Company Guide requires that the waiver must be disclosed to shareholders within four business days of such determination.

 

All amendments to the Code of Ethics, and all waivers of the Code of Ethics with respect to the Company’s principal executive officer, principal financial officer or other persons performing similar functions, will be posted on the Company’s website, submitted to the SEC on Form 6-K and provided in print to any shareholder that provides the Company with a written request addressed to the Company’s Corporate Secretary.

 

PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTANT FEES AND SERVICES

 

The information relating to the Company’s principal accountant fees and services that is included under the heading “Audit Committee Information – External Auditor Service Fees” in the 2020 Annual Information Form is hereby incorporated by reference herein. In addition, the information relating to the Audit and Risk Committee’s pre-approval policies and procedures that is included under the heading “Audit Committee Information – Pre-Approval Policy” in the 2020 Annual Information Form is hereby incorporated by reference herein.

 

OFF-BALANCE SHEET ARRANGEMENTS

 

The Company has not entered into any “off-balance sheet arrangements”, as defined in General Instruction B(11) to Form 40-F, that have or are reasonably likely to have a current or future effect on the Company’s financial condition, changes in financial condition, revenues, expenses, results of operations, liquidity, capital expenditures or capital resources that are material to investors.

 

CONTRACTUAL OBLIGATIONS

 

The Company's contractual obligations as at December 31, 2020 are presented in the Liquidity and Capital Resources – Contractual Obligations section of the MD&A which are attached as Exhibit 99.3 of this Annual Report on Form 40-F.

 

MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURE

 

Pursuant to Section 1503(a) of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010 (“Dodd-Frank Act”), issuers that are operators, or that have a subsidiary that is an operator, of a coal or other mine in the United States are required to disclose in their periodic reports filed with the SEC information regarding specified health and safety violations, orders and citations, related assessments and legal actions, and mining-related fatalities under the regulation of the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977.

 

The Company did not have any mines in the United States during the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020.

 

 

 

 

UNDERTAKING AND CONSENT TO SERVICE OF PROCESS

 

Undertaking

 

The Company undertakes to make available, in person or by telephone, representatives to respond to inquiries made by the Commission staff, and to furnish promptly, when requested to do so by the Commission staff, information relating to:

 

  · the securities registered pursuant to Form 40-F;

 

  · the securities in relation to which the obligation to file an annual report on Form 40-F arises; or

 

  · transactions in said securities.

 

Consent to Service of Process

 

Concurrently with the filing of its Annual Report on Form 40-F with the SEC on March 14, 2013, the Company filed an Appointment of Agent for Service of Process and Undertaking on Form F-X signed by the Company and its agent for service of process with respect to the class of securities in relation to which the obligation to file this annual report arises.

 

Any change to the name or address of the Company’s agent for service shall be communicated promptly to the Commission by amendment to Form F-X referencing the file number of the Company.

 

SIGNATURES

 

Pursuant to the requirements of the Exchange Act, the Company certifies that it meets all of the requirements for filing on Form 40-F and has duly caused this annual report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereto duly authorized.

 

  GREAT PANTHER MINING LIMITED
Date: March 11, 2021    
  By: /s/ Robert Henderson
    Robert Henderson
    Chief Executive Officer and President

 

 

 

 

EXHIBIT INDEX

 

Exhibit No. Exhibit Description
   
Principal Documents
99.1 Annual Information Form of the Company for the year ended December 31, 2020
99.2 Audited consolidated financial statements of the Company and the notes thereto for the fiscal years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019 together with the reports of the auditors thereon
99.3 Management’s Discussion and Analysis of the Company for the year ended December 31, 2020
   
Certifications
99.4 Certification of Chief Executive Officer pursuant to Rule 13a-14(a) of the Exchange Act
99.5 Certification of Chief Financial Officer pursuant to Rule 13a-14(a) of the Exchange Act
99.6 Certification of Chief Executive Officer pursuant to Rule 13a-14(b) of the Exchange Act and 18 U.S.C. Section 1350, as adopted pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002
99.7 Certification of Chief Financial Officer pursuant to Rule 13a-14(b) of the Exchange Act and 18 U.S.C. Section 1350, as adopted pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002
   
Consents
99.8 Consent of KPMG LLP, Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm
99.9 Consent of Robert F. Brown, author of the technical report entitled “NI 43-101 Report on the Topia Mine Mineral Resource Estimates” dated February 28, 2019; co-author of the technical report entitled “NI 43-101 Mineral Resource Update Technical Report on the Guanajuato Mine Complex, Guanajuato and San Ignacio Operations, Guanajuato State, Mexico”, dated December 22, 2020; and author of technical report entitled “NI 43-101 Technical Report on the Guanajuato Mine Complex Claims and Mineral Resource Estimations for the Guanajuato Mine, San Ignacio Mine, and El Horcón and Santa Rosa Projects”, dated February 20, 2017.
99.10 Consent of Ronald Turner, co-author of the technical report entitled “NI 43-101 Technical Report Summarizing the Preliminary Economic Assessment of the Coricancha Mine Complex” dated July 13, 2018.
99.11 Consent of Daniel A. Saint Don, co-author of the technical report entitled “NI 43-101 Technical Report Summarizing the Preliminary Economic Assessment of the Coricancha Mine Complex” dated July 13, 2018.
99.12 Consent of Jeffrey L. Woods, co-author of the technical report entitled “NI 43-101 Technical Report Summarizing the Preliminary Economic Assessment of the Coricancha Mine Complex” dated July 13, 2018.
99.13 Consent of Reno Pressacco, co-author of the technical report entitled “Amended and Restated Technical Report on the 2020 Mineral Reserves and Mineral Resources of The Tucano Gold Mine, Amapá State, Brazil” dated February 2, 2021.
99.14 Consent of Tudorel Ciuculescu, co-author of the technical report entitled “Amended and Restated Technical Report on the 2020 Mineral Reserves and Mineral Resources of the Tucano Gold Mine, Amapá State, Brazil” dated February 2, 2021.
99.15 Consent of Fernando A. Cornejo, co-author of the technical report entitled “Amended and Restated Technical Report on the 2020 Mineral Reserves and Mineral Resources of the Tucano Gold Mine, Amapá State, Brazil” dated February 2, 2021.
99.16 Consent of Neil Hepworth, co-author of the technical report entitled “Amended and Restated Technical Report on the 2020 Mineral Reserves and Mineral Resources of the Tucano Gold Mine, Amapá State, Brazil” dated February 2, 2021.
99.17 Consent of Carlos H.B. Pires, co-author of the “Amended and Restated Technical Report on the 2020 Mineral Reserves and Mineral Resources of the Tucano Gold Mine, Amapá State, Brazil” dated February 2, 2021.
99.18 Consent of Nicholas Winer, co-author of the “Amended and Restated Technical Report on the 2020 Mineral Reserves and Mineral Resources of the Tucano Gold Mine, Amapá State, Brazil” dated February 2, 2021.
99.19 Consent of Mohammad Nourpour, co-author of the “NI 43-101 Mineral Resource Update Technical Report on the Guanajuato Mine Complex, Guanajuato and San Ignacio Operations, Guanajuato State, Mexico”, dated December 22, 2020.