23 November 2015
Conroy Gold and Natural Resources plc
(“Conroy” or “the
Company”)
Final Results for
the Year Ended 31 May 2015
Significant
Progress Made Towards Development of First Mine
Conroy (AIM: CGNR; ESM: CGNRI), the Irish based resource company
exploring and developing gold and other projects in Ireland, is pleased to announce its results
for the year ended 31 May 2015. The construction of a mine at
Clontibret remains the main focus of the Company.
Highlights:
- Clontibret: recent drilling results have provided further
evidence of continuity of gold mineralisation at depth
- Existing gold body model confirmed and the gold mineralisation
zone extended
- Accelerated total project capital payback within year 2 of the
operation and a positive cash flow
- Metallurgical test work shows potentially economic quantities
of antimony present in gold concentrate
- Infill drilling shows grades of 20.05g/t gold over 1 metre and
14.10g/t gold over 0.25 metres
- Gold intercepted at 340.5 metres in the Stockwork zone – the
deepest intersection of gold to date at
Clontibret
- Clay Lake: wide gold zones have been encountered during
trenching and drilling
- Slieve Glah: an independent structural survey has highlighted
the potential for a concentration of gold mineralised faults and of
gold target zones within the gold-in-soil anomalies 3km (1.8miles)
in length
- New gold target discovered at Rockcorry in County Monaghan
Chairman, Professor Richard Conroy commented:
“We have made further progress
towards the development of the mine at Clontibret, with continuity
of gold at depth confirmed by drilling. The infill drilling
has enhanced the economics of the project, which show excellent
returns even at the current gold price, and the presence of
potentially commercial amounts of antimony further improve the
prospects. Our focus is on developing a mine at Clontibret,
initially to be open pit.”
Further Information:
Conroy Gold and Natural Resources plc |
Tel:
+353-1-661-8958 |
Professor Richard
Conroy, Chairman |
|
Sanlam
Securities UK Limited (Nomad) |
Tel:
+44-20-7628-2200 |
Virginia Bull/
Simon Clements |
|
Hybridan LLP
(Broker) |
Tel:
+44-20-3713-4580 |
Claire Louise Noyce
/ Niall Pearson/William Lynne |
|
IBI Corporate
Finance Limited (ESM Adviser) |
Tel:
+353-766-234-800 |
Ger Heffernan/Jan
Fitzell |
|
Lothbury
Financial Services Limited |
Tel:
+44-20-3290-0707 |
Michael
Padley |
|
Hall
Communications |
Tel: +353-1-660-9377 |
Don Hall |
|
www.conroygold.com
CHAIRMAN’S STATEMENT
I have pleasure in presenting your Company’s Annual Report and
Consolidated Financial Statements for the financial year ending
31 May 2015. Moving forward with your
Company’s proposed development of a goldmine at Clontibret, in
County Monaghan, has been the main
focus of your Company’s activities during the financial year.
There was also further excellent progress with your Company’s
exploration programme particularly at the Clay Lake gold target in
Co. Armagh and the Slieve Glah
gold target in County Cavan
together with the discovery of a new gold target at Rockcorry in
County Monaghan. In addition
exploration licences were granted to your Company in the highly
prospective gold district of Sodanklya in Finland.
Clontibret
Proposed Gold Mine
The Clontibret gold target, on which your Company proposes to
bring in its first gold mine includes high grade Lodes and a
Stockwork. In addition antimony is present.
The mining plan envisages a conventional surface open pit mine,
with a Phase 1 starter pit followed by a Phase 2 extension with a
combined period for Phases 1 and 2 of approximately 10 years, to be
followed by underground mining and/or further surface pits.
The Phase 1 starter pit at your Company’s proposed gold
development at Clontibret will concentrate on a high grade, densely
drilled portion of the resource and should result in accelerated
total project capital payback within year 2 of the operation and a
positive cash flow. Current metallurgical testwork is indicating
very favourable flotation and downstream processing characteristics
which together with favourable infrastructure and logistical
support will be important in reducing the project’s capital and
operating costs.
An infill drilling programme at Clontibret has shown grades of
20.05g/t gold over 1 metre and 14.10g/t gold over 0.25 metres. Gold
has also been intercepted at 340.5 metres in the Stockwork zone –
the deepest intersection of gold to date at Clontibret. Stockwork
intersections included a 12.5 metre intersection at 2.6g/t Au which
included 7.5 metres at 3g/t Au.
These recent drilling results have provided further evidence of
continuity of gold at depth at Clontibret and have enabled the
existing goldbody model to be confirmed and the gold mineralisation
zone to be extended.
For the underground mining option there are favourable grades
and widths at depth that have been identified by drilling. This ore
could be accessed by a spiral ramp at the base of the Phase 1 pit
and mined by a high volume method such as sublevel block
caving.
Elevated antimony contents are present in gold flotation
concentrate from Clontibret. Metallurgical testwork has indicated
that these are potentially economic quantities of antimony. It is
therefore planned that antimony will be mined at Clontibret in
addition to gold.
Antimony is specified by the European Commission as a critical
raw material and a large supply deficit is also forecast by the
European Commission. The product is used primarily in the
production of flame retardants.
Work has been conducted to identify flowsheet options to allow
for the extraction of the antimony from the gold bearing
concentrate. Several process options have been identified and
future metallurgical testwork will include testing these options
and optimising extraction to provide a saleable antimony
product.
The potentially economic quantities of the strategically
important mineral antimony, in addition to gold which is intended
to be mined at Clontibret, is a very welcome further development as
your Company moves forward with its mining plans for
Clontibret.
Exploration
Your Company’s Clay Lake gold target in County Armagh is greater in surface area than
the Clontibret gold target. Geologically the Clay Lake gold target
appears to be a black carbonaceous shale hosted deposit. Wide gold
zones have been encountered during trenching and drilling and the
deposit could well contain very high gold content and tonnage.
At Slieve Glah in County Cavan
an independent Structural Study by Dr. Francis Murphy and Dr. David Coller has been carried out which has
highlighted the potential for a concentration of gold mineralised
faults and of gold target zones within the gold-in-soil anomalies
defined by your Company. These gold-in-soil anomalies are
approximately 3km (1.8miles) in length. A major geological
structure, the Orlock Bridge Fault, undergoes a significant strike
swing, or bend, at Slieve Glah. This has led to the development of
a dilation zone which could hold significant mineral potential. At
Rockcorry, in County Monaghan, an
extensive (700 metres by 300 metres) gold-in-soil anomaly has been
discovered. The anomaly lies about 14 km to the south west of
Clontibret and adds further evidence as to the gold potential of
the area lying between the Glenish and Clontibret gold targets and
the Slieve Glah gold target to the south.
Further targets along the thirty mile gold trend in the
Longford-Down Massif have been identified using High Resolution
Satellite Imagery (Rapid Eye Imagery) in conjunction with
geological and airborne geophysical data sets.
A number of significant gold discoveries have been made in
Finland in recent years. The
Sodanklya region in which your Company has been granted exploration
licences appears highly prospective.
Finance
The loss after taxation for the financial year ended
31 May 2015 was €315,314 (2014:
€380,305) and the net assets as at 31 May
2015 were €15,321,650 (2014: €14,290,931).
During the financial year, on 8 October
2014, the Company raised £750,000 (prior to expenses) by
issuing 75,000,000 new ordinary shares by way of a placing and, on
21 November 2014, I converted
£273,500 of convertible debt into ordinary shares at 2.65p per
share. Details of the share issues are in Note 15 to the
accounts.
As in previous years, I have supported the working capital
requirements of the Company. The balance of the loans due to me at
the period end was €191,022. The loans have been made on normal
commercial terms. The other directors consider, having consulted
with the Company’s Nominated Adviser and the Company’s ESM Adviser,
which the terms of the loans are fair and reasonable in so far as
the Company’s shareholders are concerned.
Auditors
I would like to take this opportunity to thank the partners and
staff of Deloitte for their services to your Company during the
course of the financial year.
Directors
I would like to express my deep appreciation of the support and
dedication of all of the directors, consultants and staff, which
has made possible the continued progress and success, which your
Company has achieved.
Future Outlook
Your Company made further excellent progress in the financial
year to 31 May 2015 and this has
continued into the current financial year. We continue to progress
from the purely exploration phase into the development phase with
our primary focus on bringing a gold and antimony mine at
Clontibret into production.
Professor Richard Conroy
Chairman
20 November 2015
CONSOLIDATED INCOME STATEMENT
FOR YEAR ENDED 31 MAY 2015
|
|
2015 |
2014 |
|
|
€ |
€ |
|
|
|
|
OPERATING EXPENSES |
|
(315,314) |
(374,323) |
|
|
|
- |
Finance income – bank interest
receivable |
|
|
- |
Finance costs – interest on
shareholder loan |
|
|
(5,982) |
|
|
|
|
LOSS BEFORE TAXATION |
|
(315,314) |
(380,305) |
|
|
|
|
Taxation |
|
- |
- |
|
|
|
|
LOSS FOR THE YEAR |
|
(315,314) |
(380,305) |
|
|
|
|
Loss per ordinary share – basic and
diluted |
|
(€0.0008) |
(€0.0012) |
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL POSITION
AS AT 31 MAY
2015
|
|
2015 |
2014 |
ASSETS |
|
€ |
€ |
Non-current Assets |
|
|
|
Intangible assets |
|
17,561,838 |
16,033,308 |
Property, plant and equipment |
|
17,983 |
7,854 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
17,579,821 |
16,041,164 |
Current Assets |
|
|
|
Trade and other receivables |
|
63,586 |
59,358 |
Cash and cash equivalents |
|
23,480 |
78,372 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
87,066 |
137,730 |
|
|
|
|
Total Assets |
|
17,666,887 |
16,178,894 |
|
|
|
|
EQUITY AND LIABILITIES |
|
|
|
Capital and Reserves |
|
|
|
Called up share
capital
Called up deferred share capital |
|
4,373,208
6,135,597 |
3,520,000
6,135,597 |
Share premium |
|
8,855,525 |
8,447,949 |
Capital conversion reserve fund |
|
30,617 |
30,617 |
Share based payments reserve |
|
1,120,009 |
1,034,760 |
Retained losses |
|
(5,193,306) |
(4,877,992) |
|
|
|
|
Total Equity |
|
15,321,650 |
14,290,931 |
|
|
|
|
Non-current
Liabilities
Convertible loan |
|
- |
324,952 |
Financial Liabilities |
|
191,022 |
191,022 |
|
|
|
|
Total Non-current
Liabilities |
|
191,022 |
515,974 |
|
|
|
|
Current Liabilities |
|
|
|
Trade and other payables |
|
2,154,215 |
1,371,989 |
|
|
|
|
Total Current
Liabilities |
|
2,154,215 |
1,371,989 |
|
|
|
|
Total Liabilities |
|
2,345,237 |
1,887,963 |
|
|
|
|
Total Equity and
Liabilities |
|
17,666,887 |
16,178,894 |
CONSOLIDATED CASH FLOW STATEMENT
FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MAY 2014
|
|
2015 |
2014 |
|
|
€ |
€ |
|
|
|
|
Cash flows from operating
activities |
|
|
|
Cash generated by/(used in)
operations |
|
147,396 |
152,953 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Net cash generated
by/(used in) operating activities |
|
147,396 |
152,953 |
|
|
|
|
Cash flows from investing
activities |
|
|
|
Investment in exploration and
evaluation |
|
(1,459,440) |
(1,064,003) |
Payments to acquire property, plant
and equipment |
|
(15,673) |
(4,780) |
|
|
|
|
Net cash used in investing
activities |
|
(1,475,113) |
(1,068,743) |
|
|
|
|
Cash flows from financing
activities |
|
|
|
Issue of share capital |
|
935,832 |
812,621 |
Advances from
shareholders
Amounts repaid to shareholders |
|
-
- |
205,000
(114,600) |
Advances from Related Parties |
|
336,993 |
- |
Interest paid on shareholder
loan |
|
- |
(14,450) |
|
|
|
|
Net cash generated from financing
activities |
|
1,272,825 |
888,571 |
|
|
|
|
Increase/(Decrease) cash and cash
equivalents |
|
(54,892) |
6,508 |
Cash and cash equivalents at
beginning of year |
|
78,372 |
71,864 |
|
|
|
|
Cash and cash equivalents at end
of year |
|
23,480 |
78,372 |
Notes to the Financial Statements
1. Publication of non-statutory
accounts
The financial information set out in this preliminary
announcement are abbreviated accounts as defined in Section 1119 of
the Companies Act 2014.
The financial information for the period ended 31 May 2015 has been extracted from the Company's
financial statements to that date which have received an
unqualified auditor’s report but have not yet been delivered to the
Registrar of Companies.
2. Earnings per share
The calculation of the loss per ordinary share of €0.0008 (2014
- €0.0012) is based on the loss for the financial year of €315,314
(2014 – €380,305) and the weighted average number of ordinary
shares in issue during the year of 405,603,539 (2014 –
309,922,413).
Since the Company incurred a loss the effect of share options
and warrants would be anti-dilutive.
3. Dividends
No dividends were paid or are proposed in respect of the period
ended 31 May, 2015.
4. Copies of Accounts
A copy of the Annual Report and Financial Statements will be
available on the Company’s website www.conroygold.com and will be
available from the Company's registered office, 10 Upper Pembroke
Street, Dublin 2. It will
also be forwarded to shareholders who requested a hard copy. Notice
of the Annual General Meeting to be held on 14 December 2015 and a Proxy Form were sent to
shareholders on 20 November 2015 and
are also available on the website.