Private equity fund Appian Capital is looking to raise about US$1.2 billion to extend longer-term financing to small-scale mines globally, The Daily Telegraph reported July 29.

The London-based firm is targeting eight separate deals valued at US$100 million to US$150 million each.

It will be the company's second fund after a US$375 million fund launched in 2014 that invested in eight projects, of which five are now producing and two have been sold, according to the report.

Appian founder and CEO Michael Scherb said typical mining investors are focused on the short term, and the current funding model is "effectively broken."

According to the report, the company evaluated 409 projects for investments in 2017 but became involved in only three. Appian does its due diligence in-house, rather than outsourcing it to external parties, and favors investing in commodities such as copper and nickel, with a quarter of its investments in gold, The Telegraph added.