Kefi Minerals' H1 losses increase to £1.9m

11th Sep 2014 10:51

Kefi Minerals, a gold exploration company, saw shares fall on Thursday as its losses in the first six months of the year more than doubled.The company, which is yet to generate any revenues from its assets in Ethiopia and Saudi Arabia, increased its loss before tax to £1.9m in the first half compared to £0.8m same period last year.However, the group expects to start development next year and production in the following, which will enable it to start generating profits.In December 2013, the company raised its ownership of its flagship Tulu Kapi asset in Ethiopia to 100%.Loss per share widened to 0.22p in the first half from last year’s 0.17p, while cash and equivalents decreased to £1.4m compared to £3.3m in the first six months of 2013.Managing director Jeff Rayner said: “We are on the cusp of becoming a junior gold developer.“The board looks forward to achieving a number of key milestones by the end of the year and to delivering shareholder value."FinnCap analysts said “with the increased ownership and stronger US$ we have increased our target price from 5.6p to 5.7p per share.”Kefi Minerals’s shares were down 2.41% to 1.41p on Thursday at 10:55.