This announcement contains inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of Regulation (EU) No 596/2014 which is part of UK law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 ("MAR").
Horizonte Minerals Plc (AIM:HZM)(TSX:HZM) a nickel company developing two Tier 1 assets in Brazil, is pleased to provide a progress update for its flagship 100% owned Araguaia Nickel Project ("Araguaia" or the "Project
Summary of Progress at Araguaia
Horizonte's CEO, Jeremy Martin said, "We are pleased with the progress that has already been made at Araguaia, with the Project remaining on schedule to produce first nickel in Q1 2024. There has been substantial progress in the four months since we mobilised to site and broke ground in May with the foundations of the furnace and rotary kiln well advanced and earthworks close to complete.
The project team is focussed on ensuring that the site is prepared ahead of the upcoming wet season. Site drainage is well advanced, access roads and bridges are being upgraded to the standard required for year-round operation and the mains power to site is close to being energised. This work is all designed to ensure we are able to maintain a safe working environment, while sustaining the high productivity levels seen to date and going forward.
We have updated our forecast operating costs and are pleased to report that we believe Araguaia is and will remain in the lowest cost quartile versus a peer group who, over the last 24 months, have seen significant operational cost increases. By using the low-cost hydroelectric power available to Araguaia, we will ensure that our high grade FeNi product will be a new leading low carbon emissions product in the market.
I am also pleased to announce that we will be advancing the engineering work of the 2nd Line at Araguaia with the objective of producing an AACE class 3 capital cost estimate and advancing the design to basic engineering. As part of this work, we will look at the option of adding a nickel matte converter into the plant flowsheet providing the optionality to convert a portion of the FeNi output to nickel matte, a product that has the potential to be sold directly into the battery metal supply chain. The overall objective of this engineering work is to potentially fast-track Araguaia towards a ~29,000 tpa nickel producer.
Unfortunately we are not immune to global inflationary pressures and this along with engineering improvements designed to de-risk the operation have led to an increase in our forecast capital expenditures. However, through our rigorous focus on cost discipline we expect to be able to limit the increase to 12.6% which is broadly in line with the peak of the Brazilian inflation cycle earlier this year and we are now taking proactive steps to ensure that we have adequate access to capital through both equity and to enable first utilisation under the senior debt facilities, targeted for Q4 2022.
Nickel, a critical metal in the clean energy transition, is showing significant future demand growth and we hope to remain well positioned to deliver our product into a robust market. We look forward to announcing further updates on our development milestones as we advance Araguaia towards production and Vermelho through Feasibility, ultimately transitioning Horizonte into a large-scale Tier 1 nickel producer."
Following the ground breaking at Araguaia in May 2022, good progress has been achieved, with overall project progress of approximately 16% as at 30 September 2022, and site construction activities moving forward in accordance with the planned construction schedule.
Early works including the municipal and state road improvements are nearing completion ahead of the wet season, ensuring safe and secure access to the site from the nearby township of approximately 46,000 people of Conceição do Araguaia. The 13.8 kV local power line to support site construction is being installed and planned to be energised in October. Companhia Paranaense de Construção S.A. ("Copa") were awarded the Earthworks and Civil engineering contract, currently approximately 41% and 4% advanced respectively, with work focused on the furnace and rotary kiln foundations. The bulk earthworks scope covering all key plant platforms is completed to the stage where concrete foundations are being installed, with initial focus on the crusher retaining wall and foundation, and the furnace foundation. Further, 45 piles have been installed for the kiln foundations to date and work has begun on the water storage reservoir. Main power line construction awarded to Remo Engineering, with two work fronts established and tower construction underway. All major and long-lead-time process plant equipment contracts have been awarded. The furnace base plate components supplied by Hatch arrived on site on 3rd October, with onsite assembly and erection expected to commence within the next two weeks, and FLSmidth is also well advanced with manufacturing of the rotary kiln. Further, the Company has secured all key equipment supply and technical support services for the balance of the Araguaia process flow sheet from leading global suppliers. Combined, these contract awards act as a significant de-risking event for the Project.
Social programmes including SENAI vocational training continue, with 362 community members having already graduated or enrolled to provide a locally sourced workforce for the construction phase and the ongoing operation of Araguaia.
As part of working towards the Company's objective of producing 29,000 tpa nickel at Araguaia an engineering study is planned for Line 2 with the objective of providing an AACE Class 3 cost estimate and to advance the basic engineering.
The Horizonte project team have worked diligently to mitigate inflationary pressures on the Project budget to date which has included extensive efforts to optimise quantities through lean design and engineering, maximising competitive tension with Project suppliers and the successful deployment of a business improvement culture across the organisation, yielding material cost savings. Together, these efforts have allowed US$375m of capital commitments to be placed on budget as of the end of August 2022.
However, notwithstanding the strong progress made to date and these cost mitigation initiatives, the Project continues to face cost pressures driven by global inflation, a robust construction and mining environment in Brazil and rising interest rates, amongst others.
With a number of key local service contracts nearing award the Company now forecasts that the total project capital expenditure is expected to be US$537 million, versus the US$477 million originally budgeted in November 2021. Whilst the majority of this increase is driven by inflationary pressures the Company has also opted to invest in additional EPCM and owners team resources to further de-risk the Project schedule and seek to ensure delivery of first nickel in Q1 2024, in line with the original plan.
Using a nickel price of US$23,000/t, the Araguaia Technical Report (as defined below) estimated a post-tax NPV8 of US$1.5B and post-tax IRR of 43%. Using the same nickel price, the Vermelho Technical Report (as defined below) estimated a post-tax NPV8 of US$3.4B and post-tax IRR of 39%.The feasibility study economics for Araguaia and the pre-feasibility study economics for Vermelho are both based on a nickel price of US$23,000/t and presented for information purposes only to reflect the latest pricing information and are otherwise based on all the same parameters as those underlying the economic analysis presented in the Araguaia Technical Report and the Vermelho Technical Report, respectively, which remain current. The Araguaia Technical Report parameters do not include the forecast increase in the capital expenditure amount to US$537 million.
David Hall acting a consultant to the Company is a qualified person as defined in National Instrument 43-101, and has reviewed, approved and verified the technical and scientific disclosure contained in this press release.
For additional information, including with respect to the economic parameters discussed herein on the Araguaia and the Vermelho projects, and the key assumptions and risks associated thereto, please refer to the Company's technical reports entitled Feasibility Study for the Araguaia Nickel Project Federative Republic of Brazil NI 43-101 Technical Report, dated November 2018 (the "Araguaia Technical Report") and Pre-Feasibility Study for the Vermelho Nickel-Cobalt Project Federative Republic of Brazil NI 43-101 Technical Report, dated October 2019 (the "Vermelho Technical Report") available at www.sedar.com. The Araguaia Technical Report remains current and the economic parameters therein do not include the forecast increase in capital expenditure at the Project.
Latest images from the Araguaia site
Aerial view of the primary crusher pad and entrance ramp
Preparation of the primary crusher retaining wall
Deep pile foundation activity within the main furnace area
Operating concrete plant with concrete slabs for the reinforced crusher wall
Arrival of Hatch furnace components in Brazil and first deliveries to site
For further information, visit www.horizonteminerals.com or contact:
Peel Hunt LLP (Nominated Adviser & Joint Broker)
Horizonte Minerals plc (AIM & TSX: HZM) is developing two 100%-owned projects in Pará state, Brazil; the Araguaia Nickel Project and the Vermelho Nickel-Cobalt Project. Both projects are large scale, high-grade, low-cost, low-carbon and scalable. Araguaia is in construction. The project is expected to produce 29,000 tonnes of nickel per year to supply the stainless steel market. Vermelho is at feasibility study stage and is expected to produce 25,000 tonnes of nickel and 1,250 tonnes of cobalt to supply the EV battery market. Horizonte's combined near-term production profile of over 50,000 tonnes of nickel per year would position the Company as a globally significant nickel producer. Horizonte is developing a new nickel district in Brazil that will benefit from established infrastructure, including hydroelectric power available in the Carajás Mining District.
CAUTIONARY STATEMENT REGARDING FORWARD LOOKING INFORMATION
Except for statements of historical fact relating to the Company, certain information contained in this press release constitutes "forward-looking information" under Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking information includes, but is not limited to, the ability of the Company to complete the acquisition of equipment and commence onsite erection as described herein; forecasts of total capital expenditure for the Project; statements with respect to the potential of the Company's current or future property mineral projects; the success of exploration and mining activities; cost and timing of future exploration, production and development; the ability of the Company to achieve its goals in respect of growing its mineral resources; the realization of mineral resource and reserve estimates and achieving production in accordance with the Company's potential production profile or at all. Generally, forward-looking information can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "plans", "expects" or "does not expect", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate", or "believes", or variations of such words and phrases or statements that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will be taken", "occur" or "be achieved". Forward-looking information is based on the reasonable assumptions, estimates, analysis and opinions of management made in light of its experience and its perception of trends, current conditions and expected developments, as well as other factors that management believes to be relevant and reasonable in the circumstances at the date that such statements are made, and are inherently subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information, including but not limited to risks related to: the inability of the Company to complete the acquisition of equipment contemplated herein, on time or at all; exploration and mining risks, competition from competitors with greater capital; the Company's lack of experience with respect to development-stage mining operations; fluctuations in metal prices; uninsured risks; environmental and other regulatory requirements; exploration, mining and other licences; the Company's future payment obligations; potential disputes with respect to the Company's title to, and the area of, its mining concessions; the Company's dependence on its ability to obtain sufficient financing in the future; the Company's dependence on its relationships with third parties; the Company's joint ventures; the potential of currency fluctuations and political or economic instability in countries in which the Company operates; currency exchange fluctuations; the Company's ability to manage its growth effectively; the trading market for the ordinary shares of the Company; uncertainty with respect to the Company's plans to continue to develop its operations and new projects; the Company's dependence on key personnel; possible conflicts of interest of directors and officers of the Company, and various risks associated with the legal and regulatory framework within which the Company operates, together with the risks identified and disclosed in the Company's disclosure record available on the Company's profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com, including without limitation, the annual information form of the Company for the year ended December 31, 2020, the Araguaia Report and the Vermelho Report. Although management of the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements.
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Exploration and development mining company NiCAN Ltd (TSXV:NICN) is pursuing a portfolio of highly prospective yet underexplored projects in known nickel belts in Manitoba, one of the top nickel-producing provinces in Canada.
As the world’s sixth largest nickel producer, Canada continues to be an important jurisdiction for nickel mining, with Manitoba alone producing more than 14.2 thousand tonnes of nickel annually. NiCAN’s promising land package in Manitoba can be well-positioned to meet the rising demand for nickel, largely driven by the developing electric vehicle (EV) market. Manitoba’s nickel deposits also contain copper, cobalt and PGEs as a valuable byproduct of production.
The company recently reported encouraging assay results from its Wine project, which intersected a new mineralized near-surface zone. Assays indicate the new mineralization contains up to 2.09 percent copper and 1.23 percent nickel. The asset is in close proximity to significant nickel and copper projects, including Reed Lake Mine, Spruce Point Mine and the Rail Deposit. Furthermore, the Flin Flon-Snow Lake Greenstone Belt hosts dozens of other precious and base metal mines, indicating the potential for additional discoveries at the Wine project.
NiCAN’s Pipy project is underlain by the Pipe Formation, which hosts the renowned Thompson Nickel mine to the south. Despite its proximity to the Thompson mine, the asset has received minimal exploration attention since the 1960s, allowing NiCAN to apply modern technologies to capitalize on the untapped asset.
The company recently doubled its land position at the Pipy project, expanding to a total area of 24 sq km. NiCAN has already compiled and corrected historical data and completed a UAV high-definition magnetometer survey.
Experienced mining executives lead NiCAN with a range of expertise in exploration, project development, mining operations and financing mining assets. Additionally, the company’s board of directors brings additional expertise in international law and corporate financing. The team focuses on nickel projects in attractive and renowned jurisdictions for nickel exploration.
NiCAN’s flagship Wine project in Manitoba is located 50 kilometers southwest of Snow Lake and is near the Reed Lake mine, Spruce Point mine and Rail deposit. The asset has received minimal historical exploration yet produced significant results up to 20.37 meters of 1.3 percent nickel and 2.27 percent copper.
The Pipy project totals over 24 square kilometers in Manitoba, Canada, targeting high-grade nickel sulphide mineralization similar to the mineralizations at the Thompson T1 and T3 mines. The asset is underlain by the Pipe Formation, which hosts the nickel mineralization in the region, and is located at or close to a significant flexure in the belt. The company is currently engaging with local Indigenous stakeholders and awaiting additional work permits.
Brad Humphrey has more than 25 years of international mining experience. Prior to joining NiCAN, Humphrey was CEO of QMX Gold, which was acquired by Eldorado Gold. Prior to QMX, Humphrey worked for Morgan Stanley as an executive director and North American precious metals analyst, where he was responsible for growing Morgan Stanley's North American gold research coverage. Humphrey was also a managing director and head of mining research at Raymond James, and covered precious metal equities at CIBC World Markets and Merrill Lynch. Humphrey has held a variety of mining industry roles from contract underground miner to CEO. Humphrey is currently on the board of Royal Fox Gold.
Mike Hoffman is currently chair and director at 1911 Gold and a director of Velocity Minerals, Silver X Mining and Fury Gold. He is a mining executive with 35 years of experience including engineering, mine operations, corporate development, projects and construction. Hoffman also has direct northern Canadian mining experience, including operations and projects. He is the former CEO of Crowflight Minerals, Kria Resources and Crocodile Gold.
With more than 20 years of experience in senior financial management and reporting experience, Shaun Heinrichs is a chartered professional accountant with the Institute of Chartered Accountants of British Columbia, and holds a business degree from Simon Fraser University. His career began at Ernst & Young, and subsequently moved on to senior management roles in several public companies including as chief financial officer of Veris Gold Corp., a precious metals producer listed in Canada and the US, from 2008 to 2015, and as the CFO of VMS Ventures Inc. from 2015 to 2016. Heinrichs also served as a director of Veris Gold Corp from 2012 to 2013. Presently, Heinrichs is the CFO of Group Eleven Resources Corp., a zinc exploration company based in Ireland and 1911 Gold, a gold focused exploration company in Manitoba.
Patrick Gleeson was a corporate lawyer in Canada for almost twenty years, and has worked with Cassels, Brock & Blackwell LLP. He has taken public more than 40 companies and served as general counsel, director and executive officer for several listed companies, from start-ups to those with billion-dollar market capitalizations. Presently, Gleeson is the president and founder of St. Peter's Spirits, a socially conscious, adult beverage company producing drinks that “are rooted in the benefits of plants.” Prior to St. Peter's, Gleeson founded IR Battery Resources & Processing, which consolidated the Delta Kenty Nickel project in northern Quebec, organized the first exploration program at Delta Kenty in over 15 years, and ultimately sold the project to an international mining company.
Saga Williams, LLB has worked in Indigenous communities in government and corporate roles as legal counsel, in negotiations and governance, and as a strategic advisor, for more than 20 years. Williams has been on negotiation teams that have successfully settled more than $1 billion in agreements and has worked on Indigenous community engagement and negotiations to support national energy and mining projects. Williams teaches at Osgoode Hall Law School as an adjunct professor and supports student-led negotiations focusing on consultation, Indigenous rights and reconciliation. Over the last 25 years, she has held many non-profit board positions. Williams is Anishinaabe, a member of Curve Lake First Nation, and is currently an elected official for her community.
Dr. Mark Cruise is a professional geologist with more than 25 years of international mining experience. A former polymetallic commodity specialist with Anglo American plc, Cruise founded and was CEO of Trevali Mining Corporation. Under his leadership, the company grew from an initial discovery into a top-ten global zinc producer with operations in the Americas and Africa. He previously served as vice-president business development and exploration, COO and CEO for several TSX, TSXV, and NYSE-Americas listed exploration and development companies. Cruise is currently on the board of Velocity Minerals.
Stacey Pavlova is a finance professional with more than 10 years of experience in the mining industry in investor relations, finance and metal sales roles. Pavlova is currently the vice-president, investor relations and communications at Faraday Copper, a development-stage mining company with copper assets in Nevada and Arizona. Previously, Pavlova was the vice-president, investor relations and corporate communications at New Pacific Metals, and held various positions in investor relations, metal sales and treasury with SSR Mining, an intermediate precious metals producer. Pavlova is a chartered financial analyst and is a graduate of the University of Denver, where she completed a Master of Finance degree. Pavlova currently serves on the board of the Canadian Investor Relations Institute.
Rafaella Resources Limited (ASX:RFR) (‘Rafaella’ or the ‘Company’) is pleased to announce that a maiden JORC compliant Mineral Resource Estimate (‘MRE’) has been completed at its 100% owned San Finx tin and tungsten mine (“San Finx”).
Maiden Underground JORC (2012) Mineral Resource Estimate
Asturmine S.L. (Asturmine) has successfully completed a JORC (2012) compliant underground (“UG”) MRE for San Finx mine as of September 2022. Table 1 shows the details of the UG MRE.
A breakdown of the inferred mineral resources indicates that at Buenaventura they come from 5 primary veins and for the Pozo Nuevo zone they come from 7 veins.
Asturmine has delineated substantial Exploration Targets for the San Finx Mine, mostly located in the underexplored and less developed north-eastern half of the San Finx deposit. The exploration targets have been modelled in 3D, based on surface trenches from historic workings, on drill intersections of the 3 exploration drillholes available, and on CAD plan views from underground old workings. Up to 63 veins have been modelled in the northeast part of the San Finx deposit known as Castiñeiros Zone.
Click here for the full ASX Release
This article includes content from Rafaella Resources, licensed for the purpose of publishing on Investing News Australia. This article does not constitute financial product advice. It is your responsibility to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided here. Please refer to our full disclaimer here.
THIS ANNOUNCEMENT AND THE INFORMATION CONTAINED HEREIN, IS RESTRICTED AND IS NOT FOR PUBLICATION, RELEASE, DISTRIBUTION OR FORWARDING, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, IN WHOLE OR IN PART, IN OR INTO THE UNITED STATES, AUSTRALIA, JAPAN, THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA OR ANY OTHER JURISDICTION IN WHICH SUCH PUBLICATION, RELEASE OR DISTRIBUTION WOULD BE UNLAWFUL.
FURTHER, THIS ANNOUNCEMENT IS FOR INFORMATION PURPOSES ONLY AND DOES NOT CONSTITUTE OR FORM ANY PART OF AN OFFER TO SELL OR ISSUE, OR A SOLICITATION OF AN OFFER TO BUY, SUBSCRIBE FOR OR OTHERWISE ACQUIRE ANY SECURITIES IN THE UNITED STATES, AUSTRALIA, JAPAN, THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA OR IN ANY OTHER JURISDICTION IN WHICH SUCH OFFER OR SOLICITATION WOULD BE UNLAWFUL OR TO ANY PERSON TO WHOM IT IS UNLAWFUL TO MAKE SUCH OFFER OR SOLICITATION. NO PUBLIC OFFERING OF THE FUNDRAISE SHARES IS BEING MADE IN ANY SUCH JURISDICTION. ANY FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH THESE RESTRICTIONS MAY CONSTITUTE A VIOLATION OF THE SECURITIES LAWS OF SUCH JURISDICTIONS. PLEASE SEE THE IMPORTANT NOTICES AT THE END OF THIS ANNOUNCEMENT.
This announcement contains inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of Regulation (EU) No 596/2014 which is part of UK law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 ("MAR").
Terms used in this announcement have the same meaning given to them as defined in the Fundraise Announcement.
Horizonte Minerals Plc (AIM:HZM), the nickel development company focused on Brazil is pleased to announce the successful completion of the Placing as part of the Fundraise announced on 4 October 2022 (the "Fundraise Announcement
Jeremy Martin, Chief Executive Officer of Horizonte, commented:
"I am pleased to announce the completion of the Fundraise. I would like to thank all existing shareholders for their continued support and welcome our new shareholders as we work towards first production at Araguaia in Q1 2024 and in parallel progress feasibility work at Vermelho. Significant progress has been made since we broke ground at Araguaia in May and we remain well positioned to transition into a scalable Tier 1 nickel producer. We look forward to updating the market as construction advances at Araguaia."
Following significant institutional demand in the bookbuild from existing and new investors, the Board decided to upsize the Placing, increasing the gross proceeds from approximately £61.7 million (approximately US$70 million) to £70.5 million (approximately US$80 million) and, to reduce the participation by La Mancha from approximately £23.8 million (approximately US$27 million) to £22.0 million (approximately US$25.0 million) (before expenses).
A total of 77,945,627 new ordinary shares in the capital of the Company (the "Fundraise Shares") have been conditionally placed with, or subscribed for by, new and existing investors at the Placing Price. The incremental Fundraise proceeds will be used for contingencies and general working capital purposes.
The Fundraise Shares will represent 40.9 per cent. of the issued ordinary share capital of the Company prior to the Fundraise.
The Placing was conducted by Peel Hunt LLP ("Peel Hunt"), BMO Capital Markets Limited ("BMO" and together with Peel Hunt, the "Joint Bookrunners"). Paradigm Capital Inc. acted as financial adviser to the Placing. The Fundraise Shares will be issued as fully paid and will rank pari passu in all respects with the existing ordinary shares from their admission to trading on AIM ("Admission").
In connection with the Subscription, Jeremy Martin a director and Chief Executive Officer of the Company and Simon Retter a director of a subsidiary of the Company and Chief Financial Officer of the Company have each agreed to subscribe for 27,624 Subscription Shares at the Placing Price.
The Fundraise is conditional on, inter alia, the approval of Shareholders at a General Meeting, admission of the Fundraise Shares to trading on AIM becoming effective, receipt of conditional approval of the Toronto Stock Exchange, and the Placing Agreement not being terminated in accordance with its terms.
A Circular, containing details of the Fundraise and convening the General Meeting to consider the Resolutions to approve the issue of the Fundraise Shares, free of pre-emption rights, is expected to be posted by the Company to its shareholders on or before 14 October 2022 and subsequently filed on the Company's profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and on the Company's website at www.horizonteminerals.com. The General Meeting is expected to be held on 04 November 2022.
Application will be made to the London Stock Exchange for Admission and to the Toronto Stock Exchange (the "TSX") to list the Fundraise Shares. Subject to, inter alia, the Placing Agreement not having been terminated in accordance with its terms as well as admission to AIM and shareholder approval, it is expected that admission to AIM of the Fundraise Shares will occur at 8:00 am on or around 8 November 2022 and admission to the TSX on or around 8 November 2022.
(* calculated using the Bloomberg spot rate on 04 October 2022 for pounds sterling of £1.00 = US$ 1.1349 , £ 1.00 = C$ 1.5424 )
La Mancha Investments S.à r.l. ("La Mancha"), which holds shares representing approximately 19.9% of the Company's share capital as at the date hereof, is a related party of the Company and will be participating in the Fundraise via the Placing agreeing to conditionally purchase 24,340,744 Placing Shares (the "La Mancha Participation"). This constitutes a related party transaction under Rule 13 of the AIM Rules for Companies.
Jeremy Martin as a director and Chief Executive Officer of the Company, and Simon Retter, as a director of a subsidiary of the Company and Chief Financial Officer of the Company are also considered to be a related parties of the Company and their participation in the Fundraise also constitutes related party transactions under Rule 13 of the AIM Rules for Companies. Each of Jeremy Martin and Simon Retter have conditionally subscribed for 27,624 new ordinary shares at the Placing Price (the "Director Participation").
As such William Fisher, Owen Bavinton and Gillian Davidson, who are not participating in the Fundraising and therefore considered to be independent for the purposes of the La Mancha Participation and the Director Participation consider, having consulted with the Company's Nominated Adviser, Peel Hunt, that the terms of each of the La Mancha Participation and the Director Participation is fair and reasonable insofar as the Company's shareholders are concerned.
Participation by La Mancha and Jeremy Martin and Simon Retter also constitutes a related party transaction under Canadian Multilateral Instrument 61-101 - Protection of Minority Security Holders in Special Transactions ("MI 61-101"). The Company has determined that the participation in the Placing by the related parties is exempt from the formal valuation and minority shareholder approval requirements of MI 61-101 by virtue of the exemptions contained in Sections 5.5(a) and 5.7(1)(a) of MI 61-101, as neither the fair market value of securities issued to the related parties nor the consideration paid by the related parties exceeded 25 percent of the Company's market capitalisation. The Company also intends to rely on the exemption in section 602.1 of the TSX Company Manual in respect of the Placing as an Eligible Interlisted Issuer.
Patrick Chambers (Head of Investor Relations)
Peel Hunt LLP (Nominated Adviser and Joint Bookrunner)
Ross Allister / David McKeown / Georgia Langoulant
BMO Capital Markets Limited (Joint Bookrunner)
Tom Rider / Pascal Lussier Duquette / Andrew Cameron
Paradigm Capital Inc. (Financial Adviser)
For the purposes of MAR and Article 2 of Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2016/1055 (as transposed into the laws of the United Kingdom), the person responsible for arranging for the release of this Announcement on behalf of the Company is Simon Retter, Chief Financial Officer.
La Mancha Investments S.à r.l. and La Mancha Fund SCSp
La Mancha Investments S.à r.l. ("La Mancha") is a wholly-owned subsidiary of La Mancha Fund SCSp (the "Fund"), a Luxembourg based investment fund advised by La Mancha Resource Capital LLP that is focused on investments in the precious metals and energy transition space. La Mancha's head office is located at 31-33 Avenue Pasteur L-2311 Luxembourg. La Mancha will file an early warning report in accordance with applicable Canadian securities laws, which will be available under the Company's profile on the SEDAR website at www.sedar.com, and may also be obtained by contacting Karim-Michel Nasr as provided for below.
About La Mancha Resource Capital LLP
La Mancha Resource Capital LLP advises La Mancha Fund SCSp on strategic investments made in publicly listed and private exploration, royalty, and mining companies with a global outlook. La Mancha Resource Capital LLP is a long-term minded investment advisor, with a mandate to support mining companies to achieve sustained growth by providing long-term equity capital as well as operational and board level expertise, to further portfolio company performance and expansion. La Mancha Resource Capital LLP is an Appointed Representative of G10 Capital Limited, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FRN 648953).
For further information on La Mancha Resource Capital LLP, please visit the website at www.lamanchacapitaladvisory.com or contact:
Karim-Michel Nasr Managing Partner and Co-CIO +44.203.960.2020 contact@lamancha.com
About the La Mancha Participation
On 4 October 2022, La Mancha participated in the Placing and agreed to conditionally purchase 24,340,744 Placing Shares at a price of 90.5 pence (C$1.40) per Placing Share for aggregate cash consideration of approximately £22 million (approximately C$34 million) (this is referred to above as the "La Mancha Participation").
Subject to satisfaction or waiver of all closing conditions, the settlement of the La Mancha Participation is anticipated to occur on or before 8.00 a.m. on 8 November 2022. Prior to the La Mancha Participation, the Fund beneficially owned or had control or direction over 37,956,438 ordinary shares, representing approximately 19.99% of the then issued and outstanding ordinary shares of the Company. In addition, the Fund, via La Mancha Treasury Limited, holds a convertible note issued by the Company on 23 November 2021.
Following completion of the Placing, the Fund will beneficially own and have control and direction over an aggregate of 62,297,182 ordinary shares, representing approximately 23.21% of the then issued and outstanding ordinary shares of the Company.
All Canadian dollar equivalents are calculated using the daily average rate of exchange for GBP:CAD published by the Bank of Canada on 4 October 2022, being GBP1.00=CAD1.5504.
On 4 October 2022, La Mancha and the Company executed a deed of amendment and restatement which revises the investment agreement between La Mancha and the Company dated 23 November 2021, among other matters, to grant La Mancha the right to nominate a further director to the Board of the Company at any time when its holding in the issued share capital of the Company is twenty per cent (20%) or more.
The Placing Shares to be acquired by La Mancha on completion of the Placing will be acquired for
investment purposes. In the future, La Mancha may, from time to time, increase or decrease its investment in the Company through market transactions, private arrangements, treasury issuances, or otherwise.
THIS ANNOUNCEMENT IS FOR INFORMATION PURPOSES ONLY AND DOES NOT CONSTITUTE OR FORM ANY PART OF AN OFFER TO SELL OR ISSUE, OR A SOLICITATION OF AN OFFER TO BUY, SUBSCRIBE FOR OR OTHERWISE ACQUIRE ANY SECURITIES IN AUSTRALIA, THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA, JAPAN OR ANY OTHER JURISDICTION IN WHICH SUCH OFFER OR SOLICITATION WOULD BE UNLAWFUL OR TO ANY PERSON TO WHOM IT IS UNLAWFUL TO MAKE SUCH OFFER OR SOLICITATION. NO PUBLIC OFFERING OF THE PLACING SHARES IS BEING MADE IN ANY SUCH JURISDICTION. ANY FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH THESE RESTRICTIONS MAY CONSTITUTE A VIOLATION OF THE SECURITIES LAWS OF SUCH JURISDICTIONS.
This Announcement is not for public release, publication or distribution, in whole or in part, directly or indirectly, in or into, Australia, the Republic of South Africa, Japan or any other jurisdiction in which such release, publication or distribution would be unlawful.
No action has been taken by the Company, Peel Hunt or BMO or any of their respective affiliates, or any of its or their respective directors, officers, partners, employees, advisers and/or agents (collectively, "Representatives") that would permit an offer of the Placing Shares or possession or distribution of this Announcement or any other publicity material relating to such Placing Shares in any jurisdiction where action for that purpose is required. Persons receiving this Announcement are required to inform themselves about and to observe any restrictions contained in this Announcement. Persons (including, without limitation, nominees and trustees) who have a contractual or other legal obligation to forward a copy of this Announcement should seek appropriate advice before taking any action. Persons distributing any part of this Announcement must satisfy themselves that it is lawful to do so.
Investors Resident in the United Kingdom and the EEA
This Announcement is directed at and is only being distributed to: (a) persons in member states of the European Economic Area who are "qualified investors", as defined in Article 2(e) of the Prospectus Regulation (Regulation (EU) 2017/1129) (the "Prospectus Regulation") ("Qualified Investors"), (b) persons in the United Kingdom, who are qualified investors, being persons falling within the meaning of Article 2(e) of Prospectus Regulation (EU) 2017/1129 as it forms part of domestic law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 (the ""UK Prospectus Regulation""), and who (i) have professional experience in matters relating to investments who fall within the definition of "investment professionals" in Article 19(5) of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Financial Promotion) Order 2005, as amended (the "Order") or are high net worth companies, unincorporated associations or partnerships or trustees of high value trusts as described in Article 49(2)(a) to (d) of the Order and (ii) are Qualified Investors, or (c) otherwise, persons to whom it may otherwise lawfully be communicated (each such person in (a), (b) and (c), a "Relevant Person"). No other person should act on or rely on this Announcement and persons distributing this Announcement must satisfy themselves that it is lawful to do so. By accepting the terms of this Announcement, you represent and agree that you are a Relevant Person. This Announcement must not be acted on or relied on by persons who are not Relevant Persons. Any investment or investment activity to which this Announcement or the Placing relates is available only to Relevant Persons and will be engaged in only with Relevant Persons.
This Announcement is not being distributed by, nor has it been approved for the purposes of section 21 of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, as amended ("FSMA") by, a person authorised under FSMA. This Announcement is being distributed and communicated to persons in the United Kingdom only in circumstances in which section 21(1) of FSMA does not apply.
No offering document or prospectus will be made available in any jurisdiction in connection with the matters contained or referred to in this Announcement or the Placing and no such prospectus is required (in accordance with either the Prospectus Regulation or the UK Prospectus Regulation) to be published.
This Announcement is not for publication or distribution, directly or indirectly, in or into the United States of America. This Announcement is not an offer of securities for sale into the United States. The securities referred to herein have not been and will not be registered under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "U.S. Securities Act"), and may not be offered or sold in the United States, except pursuant to an applicable exemption from the registration requirements of the U.S. Securities Act. No public offering of the Fundraise Shares is being made in the United States or elsewhere.
Cautionary Statements Regarding Forward-Looking Information
Certain statements in this Announcement are forward-looking statements with respect to the Company's expectations, intentions and projections regarding its future performance, strategic initiatives, anticipated events or trends and other matters that are not historical facts and which are, by their nature, inherently predictive, speculative and involve risks and uncertainty because they relate to events and depend on circumstances that may or may not occur in the future. All statements that address expectations or projections about the future, including statements about expected growth in nickel global demand, production potential, the results of the feasibility and pre-feasibility studies, including, without limitation, expected NPV, IRR, construction period, pay back period, mine life, expected costs, cash generation and operating performance and other metrics, the Company's expectations with respect to its financing package (including without limitation, ability to draw down under such funding package) and the timing of commencement of construction for Araguaia, the intended use of proceeds from the proposed Fundraise, strategic initiatives, objectives, market position, industry trends, general economic conditions, expected expenditures, expected cost savings and financial results, are forward ‐ looking statements. Any statements contained in this Announcement that are not statements of historical fact are, or may be deemed to be, forward ‐ looking statements. These forward-looking statements, which may use words such as "aim", "anticipate", "believe", "could", "intend", "estimate", "expect", "may", "plan", "project" or words or terms of similar meaning or the negative thereof, are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties. There are a number of factors including, but not limited to, commercial, operational, economic and financial factors, that could cause actual results, financial condition, performance or achievements to differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward looking statements. Many of these risks and uncertainties relate to factors that are beyond the Company's ability to control or estimate precisely, such as changes in taxation or fiscal policy, approval from senior lenders to draw down under existing debt facilities, future market conditions, currency fluctuations, the behaviour of other market participants, the actions of governments or governmental regulators, or other risk factors, such as changes in the political, social and regulatory framework in which the Company operates or in economic or technological trends or conditions, including inflation, recession and consumer confidence, on a global, regional or national basis. Given those risks and uncertainties, readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this Announcement. Each of the Company, Peel Hunt and/or BMO expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise unless required to do so by applicable law or regulation. The information in this Announcement is subject to change.
Peel Hunt and BMO, each which is authorised and regulated in the United Kingdom by the FCA, are acting exclusively for the Company and for no one else in connection with the Fundraise and will not regard any other person (whether or not a recipient of this Announcement) as a client in relation to the Fundraise or any other matter referred to in this Announcement and will not be responsible to anyone other than the Company for providing the protections afforded to their respective clients or for giving advice in relation to the Fundraise or any other matter referred to in this Announcement. Peel Hunt's responsibilities as the Company's nominated adviser under the AIM Rules for Nominated Advisers are owed solely to the London Stock Exchange and are not owed to the Company or to any Director or to any other person.
In connection with the Fundraise, Peel Hunt, BMO and any of their respective affiliates, acting as investors for their own account, may take up a portion of the shares in the Placing as a principal position and in that capacity may retain, purchase, sell, offer to sell for the own accounts or otherwise deal for their own account in such shares and other securities of the Company or related investments in connection with the Placing or otherwise. Accordingly, references to Placing Shares being offered, acquired, placed or otherwise dealt in should be read as including any issue or offer to, or acquisition, placing or dealing by, Peel Hunt, BMO and any of their respective affiliates acting in such capacity. In addition, Peel Hunt, BMO and any of their respective affiliates may enter into financing arrangements (including swaps) with investors in connection with which Peel Hunt, BMO and any of their respective affiliates may from time to time acquire, hold or dispose of shares. Neither Peel Hunt nor BMO intend to disclose the extent of any such investment or transactions otherwise than in accordance with any legal or regulatory obligations to do so.
This Announcement is being issued by and is the sole responsibility of the Company. No representation or warranty, express or implied, is or will be made as to, or in relation to, and no responsibility or liability is or will be accepted by or on behalf of Peel Hunt or BMO (apart from the responsibilities or liabilities that may be imposed by the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, as amended ("FSMA") or the regulatory regime established thereunder) and/or by any of their respective affiliates and/or any of their respective Representatives as to, or in relation to, the accuracy, adequacy, fairness or completeness of this Announcement or any other written or oral information made available to or publicly available to any interested party or their respective advisers or any other statement made or purported to be made by or on behalf of Peel Hunt and/or BMO and/or any of their respective affiliates and/or by any of their respective Representatives in connection with the Company, the Fundraise Shares or the Fundraise and any responsibility and liability whether arising in tort, contract or otherwise therefor is expressly disclaimed. No representation or warranty, express or implied, is made by Peel Hunt or BMO, and/or any of their respective affiliates and/or any of their respective Representatives as to the accuracy, fairness, verification, completeness or sufficiency of the information or opinions contained in this Announcement or any other written or oral information made available to or publicly available to any interested party or their respective advisers, and any liability therefor is expressly disclaimed.
The information in this Announcement may not be forwarded or distributed to any other person in or into the United States, Australia, the Republic of South Africa, Japan or any other jurisdiction in which such release, publication or distribution would be unlawful and may not be reproduced in any manner whatsoever. Any forwarding, distribution, reproduction or disclosure of this Announcement, in whole or in part, is unauthorised. Failure to comply with this directive may result in a violation of the Securities Act or the applicable laws of other jurisdictions.
This Announcement does not constitute a recommendation concerning any investor's options with respect to the Fundraise. Recipients of this Announcement should conduct their own investigation, evaluation and analysis of the business, data and other information described in this Announcement. This Announcement does not identify or suggest, or purport to identify or suggest, the risks (direct or indirect) that may be associated with an investment in the Fundraise Shares. The price and value of securities can go down as well as up and investors may not get back the full amount invested upon the disposal of the shares. Past performance is not a guide to future performance. The contents of this Announcement are not to be construed as legal, business, financial or tax advice. Each investor or prospective investor should consult his or her or its own legal adviser, business adviser, financial adviser or tax adviser for legal, business, financial or tax advice.
Any indication in this Announcement of the price at which the Company's shares have been bought or sold in the past cannot be relied upon as a guide to future performance. Persons needing advice should consult an independent financial adviser. No statement in this Announcement is intended to be a profit forecast or profit estimate for any period and no statement in this Announcement should be interpreted to mean that earnings, earnings per share or income, cash flow from operations or free cash flow for the Company for the current or future financial periods would necessarily match or exceed the historical published earnings, earnings per share or income, cash flow from operations or free cash flow for the Company.
The Placing Shares to be issued pursuant to the Placing will not be admitted to trading on any stock exchange other than the AIM Market of the London Stock Exchange and the TSX. The Fundraise Shares, will, when issued in accordance with the rules of the TSX, form part of the Ordinary Shares of the Company currently listed for trading on the TSX.
Members of the public are not eligible to take part in the Placing and no public offering of Placing Shares is being or will be made.
Neither the content of the Company's website (or any other website) nor the content of any website accessible from hyperlinks on the Company's website (or any other website) is incorporated into, or forms part of, this Announcement.
This Announcement has been prepared for the purposes of complying with applicable law and regulation in the United Kingdom and the information disclosed may not be the same as that which would have been disclosed if this Announcement had been prepared in accordance with the laws and regulations of any jurisdiction outside the United Kingdom.
This information is provided by RNS, the news service of the London Stock Exchange. RNS is approved by the Financial Conduct Authority to act as a Primary Information Provider in the United Kingdom. Terms and conditions relating to the use and distribution of this information may apply. For further information, please contact rns@lseg.com or visit www.rns.com.
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Definitive Feasibility Study (DFS) completion rescheduled to mid-2023 to accommodate additional sample requirement for Pressure Oxidation and downstream solution purification testwork as off-take discussions support the Company’s nickel sulphate production path
Centaurus Metals (ASX Code: CTM, OTCQX: CTTZF) is pleased to provide an update on ongoing metallurgical testwork and other key work streams being progressed as part of the ongoing Definitive Feasibility Study (DFS) on its 100%-owned Jaguar Nickel Sulphide Project in north-eastern Brazil.
Recent advancements in the Pressure Oxidation (POX) process flowsheet, which offer the potential to further optimise capital and operating costs, will require the preparation of additional concentrate feed for the pilot plant work. As a result, the POX pilot plant test work is expected to commence in November 2022 to allow time for further drill core to be delivered to Australia from which additional concentrate feed can be prepared.
In line with this revised schedule, the delivery of the DFS will now occur in mid-2023 with a Final Investment Decision (FID) targeted for Q4 2023, after FEED work is sufficiently advanced to place long-lead orders and the second stage of the environmental approval process (Installation Licence) has been completed.
The environmental approval process is progressing without issue, albeit at a slightly slower pace than the Company was anticipating. Several meetings, including an initial site visit, have been held with the Environmental Agency in Para State (SEMAS) to keep them informed on project development activities.
The Company is still targeting first production in 2025, subject to confirmation of delivery timelines for long-lead items once the DFS is finalised.
Centaurus Metals Managing Director, Darren Gordon, said the additional time being taken to finalise the DFS would allow it to take advantage of enhancements to the POX process flowsheet and optimise capital and operating costs.
“We remain focused on delivering a project capable of supplying high-quality battery-grade nickel sulphate directly into the rapidly expanding EV market globally,” he said. “The economic rationale for value-adding in Brazil remains compelling, especially where the product can be delivered with an extremely low-emission footprint – which we know we can achieve at Jaguar.”
Flotation & Pilot Plant Testwork
As outlined in the ASX Release of 27 July 2022, a significant amount of flotation test work has been completed for the design of the flotation part of the overall process flowsheet design. Over 50 flotation tests have been completed, including bulk float tests, allowing the Company to prepare over 400kg of concentrate ready for pilot plant testing of the planned pressure oxidation circuit.
In conjunction with the Company’s hydrometallurgical consultants, the Company has continued to fine tune the POX process flowsheet and the pilot plant testing conditions. Development of the POX part of the process flowsheet has concentrated on maximising nickel extraction from the source nickel concentrate by testing a range of feed grind sizes, autoclave temperatures, oxygen pressure and reaction rates. This has shown that optimal nickel extraction is best achieved by controlling the rate at which the sulphides oxidise rather than maximising the rate of oxidation.
Optimising the process flowsheet with the introduction of a slurry recycle stage used to control temperature within the autoclave rather than cooling water has been shown to improve nickel extraction while also reducing the vessel volume necessary to achieve the residence time required.
Including the recycle design in the autoclave has resulted in a requirement to increase the slurry feed rate over what had been previously expected, increasing the amount of concentrate required for piloting work by ~250kg. To achieve this additional concentrate volume, further core is being sent to Australia from Brazil. The plan is to now run the pilot test from the beginning of November.
The pilot test will culminate with the delivery of nickel sulphate and other final products for product marketing as well as assisting in providing the design criteria for Ausenco to use in the development of the overall process flowsheet for the DFS.
Off-take discussions are continuing with Vale in relation to the products to be produced from Jaguar. Vale has the right to product at arm’s length market-based pricing under the original acquisition agreement for the Jaguar Project. Centaurus retains discretion over what nickel products will be produced at Jaguar.
The introduction of the Inflation Reduction Act by the US Government has highlighted the strategic importance of energy metals like nickel and, in particular, those that can be sourced in geopolitically stable jurisdictions with a low-emission footprint.
Click here for the full ASX Release
This article includes content from Centurus Metals, licensed for the purpose of publishing on Investing News Australia. This article does not constitute financial product advice. It is your responsibility to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided here. Please refer to our full disclaimer here.
THIS ANNOUNCEMENT AND THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS IN THE APPENDIX, AND THE INFORMATION CONTAINED THEREIN (Together, this "Announcement"), IS RESTRICTED AND IS NOT FOR PUBLICATION, RELEASE, DISTRIBUTION OR FORWARDING, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, IN WHOLE OR IN PART, IN OR INTO THE UNITED STATES, AUSTRALIA, JAPAN, THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA OR ANY OTHER JURISDICTION IN WHICH SUCH PUBLICATION, RELEASE OR DISTRIBUTION WOULD BE UNLAWFUL.
FURTHER, THIS ANNOUNCEMENT IS FOR INFORMATION PURPOSES ONLY AND DOES NOT CONSTITUTE OR FORM ANY PART OF AN OFFER TO SELL OR ISSUE, OR A SOLICITATION OF AN OFFER TO BUY, SUBSCRIBE FOR OR OTHERWISE ACQUIRE ANY SECURITIES IN THE UNITED STATES, AUSTRALIA, JAPAN, THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA OR IN ANY OTHER JURISDICTION IN WHICH SUCH OFFER OR SOLICITATION WOULD BE UNLAWFUL OR TO ANY PERSON TO WHOM IT IS UNLAWFUL TO MAKE SUCH OFFER OR SOLICITATION. NO PUBLIC OFFERING OF THE FUNDRAISE SHARES IS BEING MADE IN ANY SUCH JURISDICTION. ANY FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH THESE RESTRICTIONS MAY CONSTITUTE A VIOLATION OF THE SECURITIES LAWS OF SUCH JURISDICTIONS. PLEASE SEE THE IMPORTANT NOTICES AT THE END OF THIS ANNOUNCEMENT.
This announcement contains inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of Regulation (EU) No 596/2014 which is part of UK law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 ("MAR").
Horizonte Minerals Plc (AIM:HZM, TSX:HZM) announces its intention to conduct a proposed fundraising (the "Fundraise") to raise gross proceeds of approximately £61.7 million (approximately US$70 million) at a price of 90.5 pence per Placing Share (the "Placing Price"). The Fundraise comprises
Since the commencement of construction at the start of the year, Horizonte has achieved a number of key milestones in the development of Araguaia, and the project is running to schedule with US$375 million of capital commitments placed on budget as of the end of August 2022. However, in light of global inflationary pressures and engineering improvements to de-risk the project as disclosed in the operational update press release published earlier today, the total capital cost for the Company's Araguaia nickel project in Brazil ("Araguaia" or the "Project") has increased by 12.6% now forecast to be US$537 million versus the US$477 million originally budgeted in November 2021. The Fundraise is anticipated to allow the Company to complete the construction of the Project, which remains on schedule for first production in Q1 2024. In addition, the Fundraise will allow the Company to accelerate engineering studies and basic engineering for the development of line 2 at Araguaia, as well as further invest in its decarbonisation strategy for the Project.
In November 2021, the Company secured a US$633 million funding package (the "Primary Capital Raise") for the construction of Araguaia including a senior debt facility of approximately US$346 million and significant equity participation from strategic investors. Together with the Primary Capital Raise, the Fundraise is anticipated to allow the Company to draw down on its senior debt facility (subject to conditions and covenants to be satisfied at each draw down customary for a financing of this nature, including formal agreement of the cost to complete construction at that time).
BMO and Peel Hunt LLP ("Peel Hunt") (together, BMO and Peel Hunt being the "Joint Bookrunners") are acting as joint bookrunners in relation to the Placing. Paradigm Capital Inc. ("Paradigm") is acting as a financial adviser in relation to the Placing.
The Placing will be conducted in accordance with the terms and conditions set out in the Appendix to this announcement (which forms part of this announcement, such announcement and the Appendix together being this "Announcement") by way of an accelerated bookbuild ("Bookbuild" or "ABB") at the Placing Price which will be launched immediately following this Announcement. The Bookbuild will close on the 5th October 2022. However the Joint Bookrunners and the Company may choose to close the ABB at an earlier juncture at their sole discretion and the allocations are at the absolute discretion of the Joint Bookrunners and the Company. The results of the Placing and Subscriptions will be announced as soon as practicable after the close of the Bookbuild. BMO is underwriting a portion of the Placing as set out in the Appendix. Other than this partial underwriting by BMO, the Placing is not underwritten.
Unfortunately, the Company is unable to conduct a retail offering alongside the Fundraise due to having offered the maximum number of securities to retail shareholders permissible within the exemptions outlined in Article 3(2) of the Prospectus Regulation within the 12 months preceding this Announcement. Given the incremental cost of preparing a Prospectus and the time it would take to seek approval of the Prospectus from the FCA, the Directors have determined that it is in the best interests of the Company to secure additional financing required and to proceed with the Fundraise without a retail element against the backdrop of very challenging market conditions.
The Fundraise is conditional on, inter alia, the approval of Shareholders at a General Meeting, admission of the Fundraise Shares to trading on AIM becoming effective, receipt of conditional approval of the Toronto Stock Exchange, and the Placing Agreement not being terminated in accordance with its terms.
A Circular, containing details of the Fundraise and convening the General Meeting to consider the Resolutions to approve the issue of the Fundraise Shares, free of pre-emption rights, is expected to be posted by the Company to its shareholders on or before 14 October 2022 and subsequently filed on the Company's profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and on the Company's website at www.horizonteminerals.com. The General Meeting is expected to be held on 04 November 2022.
The announcement should be read in its entirety. In particular, you should read and understand the information provided in the "Important Notice" section and the detailed terms and conditions described in the Appendix.
The Company is also pleased to confirm its intention to appoint Simon Retter (CFO) to the board of Directors following completion of the Fundraise. Simon's appointment will be announced following finalisation of the terms of his appointment and the completion of the necessary regulatory due diligence in accordance with the AIM Rules for Companies, which is expected to be completed in Q4 2022.
(* calculated using the Bloomberg spot rate on 04 October 2022 for pounds sterling of £1.00 = US$ 1.1349, £1.00 = C$1.5424)
Patrick Chambers (Head of Investor Relations)
Peel Hunt LLP (Nominated Adviser and Joint Bookrunner)
Ross Allister / David McKeown / Georgia Langoulant
BMO Capital Markets Limited (Joint Bookrunner)
Tom Rider / Pascal Lussier Duquette / Andrew Cameron
Paradigm Capital Inc. (Financial Adviser)
For the purposes of MAR and Article 2 of Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2016/1055 (as transposed into the laws of the United Kingdom), the person responsible for arranging for the release of this Announcement on behalf of the Company is Simon Retter, Chief Financial Officer.
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http://www.rns-pdf.londonstockexchange.com/rns/7748B_1-2022-10-4.pdf
This information is provided by RNS, the news service of the London Stock Exchange. RNS is approved by the Financial Conduct Authority to act as a Primary Information Provider in the United Kingdom. Terms and conditions relating to the use and distribution of this information may apply. For further information, please contact rns@lseg.com or visit www.rns.com.
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Renforth Resources Inc. (CSE:RFR) (OTC:RFHRF) (FSE:9RR) ("Renforth" or the "Company") announces the release of assay results from the July channel sampling program at Lalonde and offers an update on the ongoing stripping program also at the 9km long Lalonde battery metals occurrence within Renforth's wholly owned Surimeau District Project in NW Quebec.
Results obtained from channels cut perpendicular to the strike of mineralization at Lalonde and Victoria in July include;
Renforth had already commenced the follow up stripping program which is now ongoing at Lalonde as the mineralization encountered in July was visually apparent in the channel samples, as well as confirmed in the field at the time of sampling using an XRF by our geological team. The confirmation in the field allowed planning and permitting for the Sept/Oct stripping program to proceed, now the receipt of results from the lab validates Renforth's continued exploration at Lalonde.
At Victoria, exploratory channels were cut to test for the presence of the field interpreted second mineralized horizon to the north of the previously stripped and drilled southern horizon. The channel results, in conjunction with our geophysical data and field evidence confirm that there is in fact a second, northern horizon of mineralization which our drilling, over 2.2km, at Victoria did not intersect. We now know that we only stripped and drilled the southern mineralized horizon. Field results and experience obtained at Victoria, along with our data for Lalonde, caused us to design the current stripping program at Lalonde to run perpendicular to the strike of mineralization in order to capture any parallel mineralized horizons, further discussed below and illustrated in the map.
The July channel sampling delivered the best nickel values from the calc-silicate altered ultramafics within 10 or so meters south of the southern most albitized shear zone. The shear zone itself contains sphalerite and sometimes chalcopyrite within and immediately around the shear zone. At Lalonde and at Victoria (~3.7km to the south) the nickel is usually found in the ultramafics (albitized or calc-silicate altered) "within the vicinity" of the shear zone and occasionally in the contact zone with sediments.
Our discovery that we only addressed half of the mineralization in the area we stripped and drilled at Victoria, demonstrated by our results in the field, including the channels reported on in this press release, and supported by our Mag/EM survey (flown after our 2021 drilling/stripping/drilling work at Victoria), caused our field geologists to approach Lalonde with their recent Victoria experience in mind, looking for more than one horizon. Rather than stripping along strike (as we did at Victoria) to expose as much mineralization as we could, we instead decided to strip across strike with three smaller trenches, designed to uncover any possible parallel mineralized horizons.
As of Thursday September 29 th , when our geologists made a site visit, the update is as follows;
The first two trenches are stripped, washed, and cut. The third trench is about 70% complete as of Thursday morning. All three trenches expose the same sequence of units with massive ultramafics to the south, and sediments to the north. The first two trenches expose two parallel, 1-4m thick mineralized shear zones at the contact zone between the ultramafics and the sediments. The third trench exposes one of the shear zones at the current northern extent of the trenching, however, the second shear zone is likely just beyond the current northern end of the trench and will hopefully be exposed over the next few days. All units are oriented roughly W-NW / E-SE and dip north. The exposures look essentially the same as the Victoria trenching. Since we did not chisel out any samples, mineralization was tough to see, however, the strongest nickel mineralization will likely be found in the bands of calc-silicate altered ultramafics south of the shear zones. Although the exact width of this unit is not yet known, it was observed in the trenching program completed in July and it is likely that its entire width is exposed in the new trenches. The shear zones exposed are albitized and contain relatively strong mineralization as well, 10-15% overall, including pyrite, sphalerite, and traces of chalcopyrite.
Samples presented in this press release were selected, bagged, and tagged in the field under the supervision of Francis R. Newton P. Geo (OGQ#2129) and personally delivered to the facilities of ALS Geochemistry in Val d'Or, Quebec, for analysis using the ME-MS89L assay methodology (Trace Level Lithium Exploration by Na-Peroxide Fusion).
Technical disclosure in this press release has been reviewed and approved by Francis R. Newton P.Geo (OGQ#2129), a "qualified person" pursuant to NI 43-101.
For further information please contact:
President and Chief Executive Officer
#Unit 1B - 955 Brock Road, Pickering ON L1W 2X9
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Renforth is focused on Quebec's newest battery metals district, our wholly owned ~330 km 2 Surimeau District Property, which hosts several known areas of polymetallic "battery metals" mineralization, each with various levels of exploration, as well as a significant amount of unexplored ground. Victoria West has been drilled over a strike length of 2.2km, within a 5km long mineralized structure, proving nickel, copper, zinc and cobalt mineralization, in the western end of a 20km magnetic anomaly. The Huston target, during initial reconnaissance, resulted in a grab sample grading 1.9% Ni, 1.38% Cu, 1170 ppm Co and 4 g/t Ag. Additionally, the Lalonde, Surimeau and Colonie Targets are all polymetallic mineralized occurrences which, along with various gold showings, comprise the areas of potential of this NSR free property.
In addition to the Surimeau District battery metals property Renforth wholly owns the Parbec Gold deposit, a surface gold deposit contiguous to the Canadian Malartic Mine property in Malartic, Quebec. In 2020/21 Renforth completed 15,569m of drilling which successfully twinned certain historic holes, filled in gaps in the resource model with newly discovered gold mineralization and extended mineralization deeper. Based upon the success of this significant drill program the Company considers the spring 2020 MRE, with a resource estimate of 104,000 indicated ounces of gold at a grade of 1.78 g/t Au and 177,000 inferred ounces of gold at a grade of 1.78 g/t Au to be out of date. With the new data gained Renforth will undertake to complete the first ever structural study of the mineralization at Parbec, as well as additional total metallic assay work in order to better contextualize the nugget effect on the gold mineralization.
Renforth also holds the Nixon-Bartleman property, west of Timmins Ontario, with gold present on surface over a strike length of ~500m.
No securities regulatory authority has approved or disapproved of the contents of this news release.
This news release contains forward-looking statements and information under applicable securities laws. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, are forward looking. Forward-looking statements are frequently identified by such words as 'may', 'will', 'plan', 'expect', 'believe', 'anticipate', 'estimate', 'intend' and similar words referring to future events and results. Such statements and information are based on the current opinions and expectations of management. All forward-looking information is inherently uncertain and subject to a variety of assumptions, risks and uncertainties, including the speculative nature of mineral exploration and development, fluctuating commodity prices, the risks of obtaining necessary approvals, licenses and permits and the availability of financing, as described in more detail in the Company's securities filings available at www.sedar.com. Actual events or results may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements and the reader is cautioned against placing undue reliance thereon. Forward-looking information speaks only as of the date on which it is provided and the Company assumes no obligation to revise or update these forward-looking statements except as required by applicable law.
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