TIDMALO
RNS Number : 6912H
Alecto Minerals PLC
09 June 2017
Alecto Minerals plc / EPIC: ALO / Market: AIM / Sector:
Mining
9 June 2017
Alecto Minerals plc ("Alecto" or the "Company")
Update re Mowana, operations and financial position
Director appointment
Alecto Minerals plc (AIM: ALO), the African focused gold
exploration and development company, is pleased to announce an
update on progress on the acquisition of the Mowana copper mine
("Mowana"), existing operations and the Group's finances.
The acquisition of Cradle Arc Investments (Pty) Limited ("Cradle
Arc"), which owns Mowana through its subsidiary Leboam Holdings
Limited ("Leboam") (the "Acquisition"), constitutes a reverse
takeover under the AIM Rules for Companies. Accordingly, the
Acquisition requires Alecto to publish an admission document and is
conditional, inter alia, on shareholder approval. Over the past six
months, the Company has conducted extensive technical, financial
and legal due diligence on Cradle Arc, Leboam and Mowana, the
results of which will be reflected in the admission document as
appropriate. The due diligence phase is nearly at an end and the
Company expects to commence marketing an equity fundraise shortly
and to publish the admission document towards the end of June
2017.
The Mowana mine returned to production in March 2017 and is
expected to ramp up to 100,000 tonnes of ore processed this month
with 3,286 tonnes of copper concentrate produced. Working capital
in the ramp up phase has been provided by Alecto and Fujax Minerals
and Energy Limited, Leboam's offtake partner.
Alecto has raised, in aggregate, GBP1.8 million in 2017 to date
through the issue of convertible loan notes. The majority of this
funding has been lent to Leboam. Alecto has continued to develop
its gold asset portfolio, in particular Zambia, but has focussed on
minimising corporate costs in the run up to completing the
Acquisition. Subsequent to the issue of the further convertible
loan notes, announced on 7 June 2017, and after making further loan
payments to Leboam, the Company currently has cash balances of
approximately GBP140,000, which the directors believe is sufficient
to cover expected corporate costs through to completion of the
Acquisition on the current anticipated timetable. However, in the
event that the Acquisition is delayed or does not complete, the
Company would need to raise additional funds in July 2017 in order
to continue as a going concern in light of its current status as an
exploration and development business without any income generating
production assets. Shareholders should note, however, that the
directors have a high degree of confidence that the Acquisition
will complete and will be a success, subject to completion of the
requisite fundraising and shareholder approval.
Director Appointment
Alecto is also pleased to announce the appointment of Roger
Williams to the Board of the Company as a Non-Executive Director
with immediate effect.
Roger is a Chartered Accountant with over 20 years'
international experience in mining finance and an honours degree in
French and Spanish. He was previously CFO of Randgold Resources
Limited and part of the management team that transformed Randgold
Resources from an exploration and development company into a major
gold producer. He then went on to become CFO of JSE-listed AECI
Limited. His other experience includes directorships and interim
executive appointments with various mining and mining services
companies. Mr Williams is currently a Non-Executive Director of
Sylvania Platinum Limited and interim Commercial Executive for
Digby Wells and Associates, an environmental and social consultancy
to the resources sector in Africa.
Additional Information on Mr Roger Williams
The following additional information is provided in accordance
with paragraph (g) of Schedule Two to the AIM Rules for
Companies:
Roger Alyn Williams, aged 53
Current directorships Past directorships
(last 5 years)
Sylvania Platinum African Mining & Exploration
Limited plc (now Savannah Resources
plc)
Blue Steak Trading
(Pty) Ltd
Shaft Sinkers Holdings
Clarement Associates plc
(Pty) Ltd
Taurus Gold Limited
Minefood Corporation
(Pty) Ltd
Unicastle Limited
Wilbrist Properties
Holdings Limited
As disclosed above, Mr Williams was a Non-Executive Director of
Shaft Sinkers Holdings plc, resigning in August 2014, which entered
into a creditors' voluntary liquidation in June 2015.
As disclosed above, Mr Williams was a Non-Executive Director of
Taurus Gold Limited, a privately owned exploration and development
company which entered into a compulsory liquidation in October
2016.
There is no other information that is required to be disclosed
pursuant to paragraph (g) of Schedule Two to the AIM Rules for
Companies.
** ENDS **
For further information please visit www.alectominerals.com,
follow us on Twitter @AlectoMinerals, or contact:
Alecto Minerals plc Tel: +44 (0)20 7499 5881
Mark Jones
Strand Hanson Limited Tel: +44 (0)20 7409 3494
Andrew Emmott
Matthew Chandler
James Dance
Beaufort Securities Limited Tel: +44 (0)20 7382 8300
Jon Belliss
St Brides Partners Limited Tel: +44 (0)20 7236 1177
Elisabeth Cowell
Charlotte Page
The information contained within this announcement is deemed by
the Company to constitute inside information as stipulated under
the Market Abuse Regulation (EU) No. 596/2014.
Notes to editors:
Alecto Minerals plc is an African focused, copper and gold
exploration and development company quoted on AIM, with a
prospective copper project in Botswana in production, gold
exploration projects in Mali, Burkina Faso and Mauritania and a
development project with near-term gold production in Zambia.
In Botswana, the Company is, subject, inter alia, to funding and
shareholder approval, intending to acquire a 60% interest in the
Mowana Copper Mine, a producing copper mine and plant. Alecto has
also agreed a management contract for Mowana with its partners and
will receive management fees equal to 1.5% of revenue.
In Zambia, the historical Matala and Dunrobin gold mines have,
in aggregate, a 760,000oz Au JORC Code compliant resource estimate
in the Measured, Indicated and Inferred categories at an average
grade of 2.3g/t Au. The Company intends to bring Matala into
low-cost production in the near to mid-term.
In Mali, the Company has secured a number of joint-venture
agreements, in-line with its strategy to retain exposure to the
value in its African gold exploration portfolio for little or no
cost; the Kossanto East project, which has an inferred JORC Code
compliant resource estimate of 6.72Mt grading at 1.14g/t Au for an
aggregate of 247,000 oz Au with a cut-off grade of 0.5g/t Au, is
under a joint venture agreement with Ashanti Gold Corp; the
Kossanto West Project is under a joint venture with Randgold
Resources Limited; and the 250 sq. km. Karan gold project in
southern Mali is under joint venture with Cora Gold Limited.
Alecto also owns the Kerboulé Project, located in the highly
prospective Birrimian-age Djibo gold belt in northern Burkina Faso,
as well as the wholly owned Wad Amour IOCG Project in Mauritania
which is at an exploration stage.
Accordingly, the Company has a strong, diversified project
portfolio with exciting exploration upside potential.
This information is provided by RNS
The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
END
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