GTG sells Victorian mining assets

Genetic Technologies (ASX: GTG) has severed more of its ties with its former life as gold mining and exploration company Duketon Goldfields by offloading its remaining Victorian mining assets.

The company has sold its entire interest in Mt Alexander Goldfields to mining company Austindo Resources for a cash price of $300,000. Mt Alexander Goldfields was a wholly owned subsidiary of GTG.

GTG executive director Ian Dennis said that the sale also released GTG from a $250,000 provision for rehabilitation. In addition, a further $117,000 in performance bonds for the mining lease will be returned to the company.

"Over the last 12 months we have been working towards selling our mining assets," said Dennis.

He explained that the market had been a bit slow due to the low price of gold, but had picked up recently, enabling GTG to sell the assets.

GTG still retains a 21.18 per cent share in the Duketon Belt Joint Venture in Western Australia. According to Dennis, this asset is currently not costing them anything to run as joint venture partner Newmont Australia assumes all of the costs.

Dennis said that these assets would be retained by GTG until Newmont is ready to take over the joint venture.

He said that the sale of the assets would demonstrate to the market that GTG is committed to being a biotechnology company.

At the time of writing, GTG shares were trading at $0.54.