RTG Mining Inc. said Feb. 27 that it received commitments to raise about US$34 million through a private placement to Australian and international institutional and sophisticated investors.

The group said the financing was oversubscribed, reflecting "strong interest" in its proposal for developing the Panguna copper-gold property in Papua New Guinea and the progress of its Mabilo copper project in the Philippines.

The financing will see the issuance of approximately 311 million Chess Depository Instruments at 14 Australian cents apiece in two tranches. The first tranche will comprise 25,137,836 securities totaling about US$2.8 million to be issued on or around March 8, while the second will include 286,217,476 securities totaling about US$31.2 million. The issuance of the last tranche's securities will be subject to shareholder approval, which will be sought in an April meeting.

Proceeds will be used to advance RTG's efforts to secure the development partner role for the Panguna property and to fund an arbitration process relating to the Mabilo project and additional drilling at the site. The funds are also earmarked for potential business development opportunities and general working capital.