NYSE: VZLA TSX-V:
VZLA
VANCOUVER, BC, Jan. 17,
2024 /CNW/ - Vizsla Silver Corp. (TSXV:
VZLA) (NYSE: VZLA) (Frankfurt:
0G3) ("Vizsla Silver" or the "Company") is pleased to
announce its intention to spin out the shares of Vizsla Royalties
Corp. ("Vizsla Royalties"), a wholly-owned subsidiary of
Vizsla Silver, to the Company's shareholders (the
"Spinout"). Vizsla Royalties currently holds, indirectly, a
net smelter royalty (the "Royalty") on any potential future
mineral production at Vizsla Silver's flagship, 100% owned
Panuco silver-gold project located
in Sinaloa, Mexico (the
"Project" or "Panuco").
The Royalty consists of: (i) a 2.0% net smelter return royalty
on certain unencumbered concessions comprising the Project; and
(ii) a 0.5% net smelter return royalty on certain encumbered
concessions comprising the Project which have a pre-existing 3.0%
net smelter return royalty (the "Underlying
Royalty").
Vizsla Silver is also expected to: (i) transfer to Vizsla
Royalties the right to purchase one-half of the 3% Underlying
Royalty; (ii) grant Vizsla Royalties the right to acquire a royalty
on any future projects acquired by Vizsla Silver in the 24-month
period after completion of the Spinout, which right would
automatically terminate upon a change of control of Vizsla
Royalties or Vizsla Silver and (iii) make a cash injection into
Vizsla Royalties.
It is expected that the Spinout will be completed pursuant to a
plan of arrangement under the Business Corporations Act
(British Columbia). The Spinout
would be subject to shareholder, court, stock exchange and
regulatory approvals, as well as, at management's continued
discretion. Pursuant to the Spinout, common shares of Vizsla
Royalties would be distributed to shareholders of Vizsla Silver.
Vizsla Silver is expected to hold approximately a 49% ownership
interest in Vizsla Royalties, with the remaining shares of Vizsla
Royalties being distributed to shareholders of Vizsla Silver on a
pro-rata basis at a time to be determined by the board of
directors of Vizsla Silver. There will be no change in
shareholders' holdings in Vizsla Silver as a result of the
Spinout.
Subsequent to completion of the Spinout, the board of directors
of Vizsla Royalties (the "Vizsla Royalties Board") may
decide to pursue a listing on the TSX Venture Exchange if and when
the Vizsla Royalties Board determines it is in the best interests
of the Vizsla Royalties shareholders. It is expected that, at the
time Vizsla Royalties pursues a listing on the TSX Venture
Exchange, a majority of the members of its management team and the
Vizsla Royalties Board will be independent of Vizsla Silver.
Additional details regarding the Spinout, including the proposed
record date, will be provided as they become available. There is no
certainty Vizsla Silver will proceed with the Spinout.
Shareholders are invited to contact Vizsla Silver via email at
info@vizslasilver.ca for additional information regarding the
Spinout.
About the Panuco Project
The newly consolidated Panuco
silver-gold project is an emerging high-grade discovery located in
southern Sinaloa, Mexico, near the
city of Mazatlán. The 7,189.5 hectare, past producing district
benefits from over 86 kilometres of total vein extent, 35
kilometres of underground mines, roads, power, and permits.
The district contains intermediate to low sulfidation epithermal
silver and gold deposits related to siliceous volcanism and crustal
extension in the Oligocene and Miocene. Host rocks are mainly
continental volcanic rocks correlated to the Tarahumara
Formation.
On January 8, 2024, the Company
announced an updated mineral resource estimate for Panuco (the "Updated Mineral
Resource"). The Updated Mineral Resource includes an estimated
in-situ indicated mineral resource of 155.8 Moz AgEq and an in-situ
inferred resource of 169.6 Moz AgEq. An updated technical report is
being prepared on the updated Mineral Resource Estimate in
accordance with National Instrument 43-101 – Standards of
Disclosure for Mineral Projects and will be available on the
Company's website and SEDAR within 45 days of the date of
announcement of the Updated Mineral Resource.
About Vizsla Silver
Vizsla Silver is a Canadian mineral exploration and development
company headquartered in Vancouver,
BC, focused on advancing its flagship, 100%-owned
Panuco silver-gold project located
in Sinaloa, Mexico. To date,
Vizsla Silver has completed over 350,000 metres of drilling at
Panuco leading to the discovery of
several new high-grade veins. For 2024, Vizsla Silver is focused on
de-risking the resource base located in the western portion of the
district ahead of a development decision. Additionally, Vizsla
Silver has budgeted +65,000 metres of resource/discovery-based
drilling designed to upgrade and expand the Project's mineral
resource, as well as test other high priority targets across the
district.
In accordance with National Instrument 43-101 – Standards of
Disclosure for Mineral Projects, Martin
Dupuis, P.Geo., Chief Operating Officer, is the Qualified
Person for the Company and has reviewed and approved the technical
and scientific content of this news release.
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services
Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture
Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of
this release.
SPECIAL NOTE REGARDING FORWARD
LOOKING STATEMENTS
The information contained herein contains "forward-looking
statements" within the meaning of the United States Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and "forward-looking
information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities
legislation. "Forward-looking information" includes, but is not
limited to, statements with respect to the activities, events or
developments that the Company expects or anticipates will or may
occur in the future, including, without limitation, planned
exploration activities. Generally, but not always, forward-looking
information and statements can be identified by the use of words
such as "plans", "expects", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled",
"estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates", or "believes"
or the negative connotation thereof or variations of such words and
phrases or state that certain actions, events or results "may",
"could", "would", "might" or "will be taken", "occur" or "be
achieved" or the negative connotation thereof. Forward-looking
statements in this news release include, among others, statements
relating to: timing, structure and completion of the Spinout; the
transfer of assets from Vizsla Silver to Vizsla Royalties; the
timing and receipt of required shareholder, court, stock exchange
and regulatory approvals for the Spinout; the retained ownership
interest of Vizsla Silver in Vizsla Royalties; the terms of the
Spinout; the listing of Vizsla Royalties on the TSX Venture
Exchange; and exploration, development, and production at
Panuco.
Forward‐looking statements and forward‐looking information
relating to any future mineral production, liquidity, enhanced
value and capital markets profile of the Company, future growth
potential for the Company and its business, and future exploration
plans are based on management's reasonable assumptions, estimates,
expectations, analyses and opinions, which are based on
management's experience and perception of trends, current
conditions and expected developments, and other factors that
management believes are relevant and reasonable in the
circumstances, but which may prove to be incorrect. Assumptions
have been made regarding, among other things, the price of silver,
gold, and other metals; no escalation in the severity of public
health crises; costs of exploration and development; the estimated
costs of development of exploration projects; the Company's ability
to operate in a safe and effective manner and its ability to obtain
financing on reasonable terms.
These statements reflect the Company's respective current views
with respect to future events and are necessarily based upon a
number of other assumptions and estimates that, while considered
reasonable by management, are inherently subject to significant
business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties
and contingencies. Many factors, both known and unknown, could
cause actual results, performance, or achievements to be materially
different from the results, performance or achievements that are or
may be expressed or implied by such forward‐looking statements or
forward-looking information and the Company has made assumptions
and estimates based on or related to many of these factors. Such
factors include, without limitation: the Company's dependence on
one mineral project; precious metals price volatility; risks
associated with the conduct of the Company's mining activities in
Mexico; regulatory, consent or
permitting delays; risks relating to reliance on the Company's
management team and outside contractors; risks regarding mineral
resources and reserves; the Company's inability to obtain insurance
to cover all risks, on a commercially reasonable basis or at all;
currency fluctuations; risks regarding the failure to generate
sufficient cash flow from operations; risks relating to project
financing and equity issuances; risks and unknowns inherent in all
mining projects, including the inaccuracy of reserves and
resources, metallurgical recoveries and capital and operating costs
of such projects; contests over title to properties, particularly
title to undeveloped properties; laws and regulations governing the
environment, health and safety; the ability of the communities in
which the Company operates to manage and cope with the implications
of public health crises; the economic and financial implications of
public health crises to the Company; operating or technical
difficulties in connection with mining or development activities;
employee relations, labour unrest or unavailability; the Company's
interactions with surrounding communities and artisanal miners; the
Company's ability to successfully integrate acquired assets; the
speculative nature of exploration and development, including the
risks of diminishing quantities or grades of reserves; stock market
volatility; conflicts of interest among certain directors and
officers; lack of liquidity for shareholders of the Company;
litigation risk; ongoing military conflicts around the world;
general economic factors; and the factors identified under the
caption "Risk Factors" in the Company's management discussion and
analysis and other public disclosure documents.
Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors
that could cause actual results to differ materially from those
contained in the forward-looking information or implied by
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 forward-looking information and statements
will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events
could differ materially from those anticipated, estimated or
intended. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on
forward-looking statements or information. The Company
undertakes no obligation to update or reissue forward-looking
information as a result of new information or events except as
required by applicable securities laws.
SOURCE Vizsla Silver Corp.