TIDMERIS
RNS Number : 8132I
Erris Resources PLC
06 April 2020
Erris Resources plc / EPIC: ERIS.L / Market: AIM / Sector:
Mining
6 April 2020
Erris Resources plc
("Erris Resources" or the "Company")
Final Results
Erris Resources plc, the European focused mineral exploration
company, is pleased to announce its final audited results for the
year ended 31 December 2019.
The Company's Annual Report and Financial Statements for the
year ended 31 December 2019 will be posted to shareholders today
and will be available on the Company's website at
https://www.errisresources.com/annual-interim-reports .
Overview
-- Cautious approach that saw the Company carefully husband its
resources whilst actively seeking new opportunities
-- Abbeytown Project, Ireland
o High-grade extensive mineralisation confirmed, and positive
preliminary metallurgical test results received
o Seeking a partner to advance the project
-- Galway Project, Ireland
o Encouraging results from historic data review combined with
new regional aeromagnetic data and soil results
o Marketing the project to major companies
-- Finland and Sweden / Centerra Gold Strategic Alliance
o Centerra spent US$250,000 on generative exploration work for
the year
o Targets for gold exploration in Finland identified but
reservation permits surrendered as too small for Centerra
o Seven permits in Sweden, of which five make up the Brännberg
Gold Project, which has some significant intersections of gold
mineralisation - 100% owned by Erris Resources
o Centerra terminated strategic alliance in December 2019
-- Norway
o Granted several exploration licences in 2019 including the
Gautelis permits in northern Norway where ground truthing work has
confirmed the gold mineralisation potential
o Ongoing target evaluation identified Varden where high-grade
zinc was sampled historically, and limited drilling encountered
sporadic low grades of zinc and gold mineralisation
o Post period end, in February 2020, three 10 km2 permits
covering the Haugfjell and Varden Ridge prospects were granted to
Erris Resources - currently assessing true potential
-- Scotland
o Joint-venture agreed in December with option to acquire 80% of
the Loch Tay gold and associated base metals project in Perthshire
through defining a minimum inferred resource of 250,000 oz gold
o Highly prospective project, which lies within the Grampian
Gold Belt that hosts several gold deposits
o Identified two priority target areas where prospecting and
mapping followed by soil sampling is planned to outline future
drill targets and identify other gold targets
-- Board and Management changes agreed to maximise financial and personnel resources
-- Disciplined approach to expenditure - well funded for the
remainder of 2020 with a EUR1.4 million cash position as at 31
December 2019
-- Currently impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic and all necessary
steps taken to protect the well-being of staff, stakeholders and
local communities
Chairman's Statement
The global backdrop for the resources industry was challenging
in 2019, necessitating a cautious approach by Erris Resources that
saw us carefully husband our resources whilst actively seeking new
opportunities. Accordingly, new exploration ground was staked in
Norway and, in December, the Company entered into a joint-venture
and option agreement relating to the Loch Tay Gold Project in
Scotland. Our team continues to seek and evaluate new projects that
fit the Erris Resources model.
Ireland
Erris Resources holds five prospecting licences ("PLs") at its
100% owned brownfield Lead-Zinc Abbeytown Project in Ireland
covering a total of 136km2, these have been held since 2013 and
were successfully renewed in Q3 2019 for a further six years.
In January 2019, the Company reported the final results from an
extensive underground drilling and sampling programme. The
underground work involving mapping, channel sampling and drilling
resulted in a much better understanding of the controls and
distribution of mineralisation in the project area and confirmed
that mineralisation is continuous between the mine and the location
of surface drilling south of the mine. The best intersection in
surface drilling was located furthest from the mine where hole
ERAB005 intersected 15.63% Zn+Pb combined and 90.68 g/t Ag over
4.1m. Mineralisation is open to the south. East-west orientated
normal faults are now recognised as important for controlling
mineralisation and results have demonstrated that where these
intersect north-northeast trending structures is typically where
the highest-grade mineralisation is developed. With these new
observations, the Company expanded tight-spaced soil sampling and
identified new target areas extending the possible footprint of
mineralisation further south from the workings and the area drilled
300m south of the mine.
Close-spaced soil sampling confirmed the presence of strong
anomalies over interpreted structures visible in the airborne
geophysics data close to the Ox Mountains Fault. Results for 527
closely spaced samples were released in March 2019. One sample
yielded 10.65ppm silver (Ag), 1,585 ppm lead (Pb) and 2,530ppm zinc
(Zn) and represents a priority drill target. A total of 470 samples
including QAQC samples were also taken along seven lines at Skreen.
These and adjacent results confirm the importance of the Ox
Mountains Fault as a first order control on mineralisation in the
district, which is also evident south of Abbeytown itself.
Also in March 2019, the Company reported results of a
preliminary metallurgical study involving a bench flotation test
and bond mill test on material collected from the underground
pillars and western workings, which indicated that production of a
good quality, saleable concentrate can be achieved based on a
straightforward, standard flotation process.
The results for all work to date at Abbeytown have been positive
and a high level of success has been achieved with drilling.
Further drilling is required to outline the potential of new
targets south of the mine and near the Ox Mountains Fault. The
Company has been seeking a partner to advance the Abbeytown project
and will continue to do so in 2020. Difficult market conditions in
the zinc sector has impacted interest in zinc projects but, as
there are no immediate expenditure commitments required for
Abbeytown, the value of the project can be preserved until interest
recovers.
Erris Resources was granted 18 PLs in Co. Galway in August 2018
covering an area of 673km2. During 2019, the Company conducted data
reviews, reprocessed the new free regional aeromagnetic and EM data
released by the Geological Survey and digitised historic soil and
drill data for the project area. Preliminary prospecting and soil
sampling was carried out to confirm two of these higher priority
historic soil anomalies.
While the results of the historic data review combined with new
regional aeromagnetic data and soil results are very encouraging,
the targets are likely at depths of greater than 300-400m and drill
testing such early stage targets would be considered risky for
Erris Resources in the current market. We have been marketing the
project to major companies and will continue to do so. Boliden, in
joint venture with Minco Exploration, recently carried out a
seismic survey on adjacent contiguous PLs to the north which
represents a major investment while a new major entrant into
Ireland, South32, recently signed an earn-in agreement for early
stage zinc-lead exploration projects with Adventus in the south of
Ireland.
Finland and Sweden / Centerra Gold Strategic Alliance
Erris Resources continued its strategic alliance with Centerra
Gold ('Centerra') during 2019 with Centerra committing to spend
US$250,000 on generative exploration work for the year. In January
2019, the Company expanded into Finland with applications for two
reservation permits submitted. Erris Resources was granted the 99sq
km Sakiatieva reservation permit in the Central Lapland Greenstone
belt, North Finland, in February 2019 and the 641.9sq km
Pirunkoukku reservation permit in Central Finland in April 2019.
The priority project was Sakiatieva and work, fully funded by
Centerra, involved compilation of historic data, purchase and
reprocessing of airborne magnetic and EM data, a remote sensing and
structural interpretation study, a drone magnetic survey, mapping,
prospecting, a soil survey and re-logging of historic drill core.
Targets for gold exploration were identified, however, the
footprint and style of mineralisation suggested that the target
would be too small for Centerra to justify further exploration on
the project. Prospecting was also carried out across the larger
Pirunkoukku reservation permit but no targets that warranted
further exploration were identified. Post period end, Erris
Resources has taken action to close down its Finnish operations and
surrender the reservation permits.
In Sweden, the Company currently has seven permits of which five
make up the Brännberg Gold Project in the Skellefte Mining District
of North Sweden. The other permits are Enåsen and Storkullen in
Central Sweden. The combined area of the Brännberg project is now
3,469 Ha and the permits are 100% owned by Erris Resources. In
2018, Centerra funded drilling of 14 holes totalling 2,681.7m to
test the down dip and along-strike continuations of mineralisation
intersected in historic drilling by Beowulf Mining. The project
reverted to Erris Resources following the termination of the
earn-in by Centerra for the Brännberg Designated Project Area in
December 2018. The project has some significant intersections of
gold mineralisation, which remain open at depth including hole
BB004 with 17.2m @ 1.93g/t Au and 0.26% Cu. Drilling to date has
only tested approximately 900m along a single corridor within the
3,469Ha permit block with results confirming that there is a gold
system at Brännberg that warrants further work. The project is only
10.8km from
the active Maurliden Mine (Boliden) and 6.2km from a closed mine
(Mensträsk). Erris Resources has decided to retain the project and
seek investment from other parties.
Following four years of identifying and testing targets,
Centerra announced in December 2019 that it had terminated its
strategic alliance with Erris Resources. During this time, the
total expenditure on Centerra projects was approximately US$3.4
million on which Erris Resources earned consultancy fees of 10% for
managing the exploration work. The work resulted in the discovery
of several new mineralised zones in outcrop and some significant
intersections in drilling. However, drilling did not outline
exploration targets meeting the minimum criteria for Centerra to
continue funding. In addition, Erris Resources and Centerra
reviewed several third-party opportunities, however, none were
attractive to either party.
Erris Resources is grateful for the consulting and exploration
partnership with Centerra over the past four years, which from our
experience is a typical duration for such joint ventures. While we
are disappointed that it has ended, we will continue to pursue this
type of partnership with other mining partners having demonstrated
our consulting expertise in delivering cost-effective
exploration.
Norway
Erris Resources applied for and was granted a number of
exploration licences in Norway in 2019. Of these, the Gautelis
permits in northern Norway are the most prospective and were
renewed in December 2019 following ground truthing work which
confirmed the gold mineralisation potential. At Gautelis, several
mineralised occurrences are known including intersections in
carbonates of 3m grading 6.66g/t Au from 50-53m and 3m grading 3.3
g/t Au from 44-47m in hole 2-85. The upper 26m of hole 4-84
returned 26m grading 0.58 g/t Au suggesting potential for broad
zones of mineralisation in the carbonates.
Results from initial samples taken at the Mauken Project in
Northern Norway were disappointing and therefore the permit was
surrendered in December 2019. Ongoing target evaluation identified
another project, Varden, 45km north of Gautelis where high-grade
zinc was sampled historically and limited drilling encountered
sporadic low grades of zinc and gold mineralisation. Three styles
of mineralisation are known in the area: bedding parallel Fe and
Zn-Pb sulphide mineralisation, shear-zone-hosted Cu-Au-As
mineralisation, including remobilisation of Zn-Pb and
quartz-vein-hosted Cu-Au mineralisation. The style of
mineralisation and setting has been compared to that at the Cobar
ore field in Australia by a well-respected geologist, Dave Coller
who wrote a historic exploration report on the project in 2004.
Post period end, in February 2020, three 10 km2 permits covering
the Haugfjell and Varden Ridge prospects were granted to Erris
Resources. The data is currently being compiled and ground truthing
visits will be warranted to assess the true potential of the
project.
Scotland
On 10 December 2019, Erris Resources entered into a
joint-venture and option agreement with GreenOre Gold plc giving us
the option to acquire 80% of the Loch Tay gold and associated base
metals project (the Loch Tay Project") in Perthshire, Scotland
subject to satisfactory conclusion of a due diligence review. We
completed our due diligence review on 15 January 2020 and now have
four years from that date to define a minimum inferred resource of
250,000 oz gold in order to earn an 80% interest in the
project.
The project area is highly prospective and lies within the
Grampian Gold Belt, which hosts a number of gold deposits including
Curraghinalt in Northern Ireland and Cononish in Scotland, just 43
km away from the Loch Tay Project area, where Scotgold is expected
to commence production during 2020.
The team has already identified two priority target areas, Lead
Trial and Glen Almond, based on the presence of historic workings,
mineralised outcrops and alluvial gold occurrences. The Company
intends to commence prospecting and mapping followed by soil
sampling at the Lead Trial prospect as soon as the weather allows
with the aim of outlining future drill targets and identifying
other gold targets within the license area.
Board and Corporate
With effect from 2 March 2020 the Company announced changes to
its Board and Management Team to best maximise financial and
personnel resources. Jeremy Martin stepped down from his role as
Chairman, but shall remain a Non-Executive Director; I, Anton du
Plessis, stepped down from my role as CEO to become Non-Executive
Chairman; and David Hall, who has been a consultant to the Company
since it was admitted to trading on AIM in 2017, becomes the new
CEO in a non-board capacity. Having entered into the Loch Tay
Project option arrangement and as the Company focuses on
exploration activities to advance this and its other projects, it
was felt that David's vast experience as an exploration geologist
would be best served in the CEO position.
Financial Overview
The Company maintains a disciplined approach to expenditure and
as such is well funded for the remainder of 2020 with a EUR1.4
million cash position as at 31 December 2019. In line with current
market conditions, the Company has been reducing its costs across
all areas.
Outlook
We are fully aware that the share price performance of the
Company since IPO has been challenging. Much of this has been
beyond the Company's control linked to macro events and a generally
weak market for junior exploration companies. However, with our
strong cash position of around EUR1.2m at the end of March and team
with a proven track record of discovery and value creation, I am
confident that the Company will deliver to shareholders.
Erris is also currently impacted, like all companies, by the
Covid-19 pandemic and has taken all necessary steps to protect the
well-being of its staff, stakeholders and local communities. There
has been no impact on Abbeytown, as no new work was planned for the
coming months. We do not yet know the impact on our projects in
Sweden and Norway, as field trips were only planned for the summer
months and we do not yet know what restrictions will remain in
place. We have now suspended field work in Scotland but were able
to complete the submission of 121 rock samples to the ALS
Laboratories in Ireland and will update the market as soon as we
have results.
I would like to thank our shareholders for their continued
support, including industry major, Osisko Gold Royalties, and I
look forward to providing further updates on our progress.
Anton du Plessis
Non-Executive Chairman
GROUP STATEMENT OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME
FOR THE YEARED 31 DECEMBER 2019
31 December 31 December
2019 2018
Continuing operations Notes EUR EUR
Revenue 4 17,527 165,216
Cost of sales (104,102) (129,569)
Gross (loss)/profit (86,575) 35,647
Exploration projects impairment - (317,396)
Administrative expenses (475,592) (696,083)
Share based payments charge 23 - (124,901)
Operating loss 6 (562,167) (1,102,733)
Finance income 9 - 1,289
Loss before taxation (562,167) (1,101,444)
Tax on loss 10 30,648 -
Loss for the financial year 26 (531,519) (1,101,444)
Other comprehensive income - -
Total comprehensive loss for the
year (531,519) (1,101,444)
Earnings per share from continuing
operations attributable to
the owners of the parent company 11
Basic (cents per share) (1.71) (3.54)
Diluted (cents per share) (1.71) (3.54)
Total loss and comprehensive loss for the year is attributable to
the owners of the parent company.
GROUP STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL POSITION
AS AT 31 DECEMBER 2019
31 December 31 December
2019 2018
Notes EUR EUR
Non-current assets
Intangible assets 12 2,002,334 1,745,118
Current assets
Trade and other receivables 17 36,030 59,334
Cash and cash equivalents 1,497,277 2,366,893
1,533,307 2,426,227
Total assets 3,535,641 4,171,345
Current liabilities
Current tax liabilities - 30,648
Trade and other payables 19 43,130 112,873
Amounts owed to Strategic
Alliance partner 20 - 3,794
43,130 147,315
Net current assets 1,490,177 2,278,912
Total liabilities 43,130 147,315
Net assets 3,492,511 4,024,030
Equity
Share capital 24 351,133 351,133
Share premium 4,151,045 4,151,045
Other reserves 25 811,077 827,376
Retained earnings 26 (1,820,744) (1,305,524)
Total equity 3,492,511 4,024,030
GROUP STATEMENT OF CHANGES IN EQUITY
FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2019
Share capital Share premium Other reserves Retained Total
account earnings
Notes EUR EUR EUR EUR EUR
Balance at 1 January
2018 351,133 4,151,045 759,687 (261,292) 5,000,573
Year ended 31 December 2018:
Loss and total
comprehensive
income for the year - - - (1,101,444) (1,101,444)
Total comprehensive income
for the year - - - (1,101,444) (1,101,444)
Credit to equity for
equity settled
share-based
payments 23 - - 124,901 - 124,901
Transfer of lapsed
share
options - - (57,212) 57,212 -
Total transactions
with
owners recognised
directly
in equity - - 67,689 57,212 124,901
Balance at 31 December 2018
and 1 January 2019 351,133 4,151,045 827,376 (1,305,524) 4,024,030
Year ended 31 December 2019:
Loss and total
comprehensive
income for the year - - - (531,519) (531,519)
Total comprehensive income
for the year - - - (531,519) (531,519)
Transfer of lapsed
share
options - - (16,299) 16,299 -
Total transactions with
owners
recognised directly in
equity - - (16,299) 16,299 -
Balance at 31 December 2019 351,133 4,151,045 811,077 (1,820,744) 3,492,511
GROUP STATEMENT OF CASH FLOWS
FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2019
Year ended Year ended
31 December 31 December
2019 2018
Notes EUR EUR EUR EUR
Cash flows from operating activities
Cash used in operations 31 (607,875) (704,956)
Net cash outflow from operating
activities (607,875) (704,956)
Cash flows from investing
activities
Exploration expenditure (257,214) (1,014,729)
Exploration expenditure utilising
funds from Strategic Alliance
Agreement (222,154) (1,493,877)
Interest received - 1,289
Net cash used in investing
activities (479,368) (2,507,317)
Cash flows from financing activities
Proceeds from issue of shares - 56,319
Funds received from Strategic
Alliance Agreements 217,627 1,432,704
Net cash generated from
financing activities 217,627 1,489,023
Net decrease in cash and cash
equivalents (869,616) (1,723,250)
Cash and cash equivalents at
beginning of year 2,366,893 4,090,143
Cash and cash equivalents at
end of year 1,497,277 2,366,893
Notes to the financial statements can be found in the Company's
Annual Report and Financial Statements on the Company's website at
https://www.errisresources.com/annual-interim-reports .
*ENDS*
For further information visit www.errisresources.com or
contact:
David Hall/Aiden Lavelle Erris Resources plc +353 (0) 94 902 8481
Allenby Capital (Nominated
David Hart/Liz Kirchner Adviser) +44 (0) 20 3328 5656
------------------------------- ---------------------
Shard Capital (Joint
Erik Woolgar Broker) +44 (0) 20 7186 9952
------------------------------- ---------------------
Zoe Alexander/Andy Turner Pope Investments
Thacker (TPI) Ltd (Joint Broker) +44 (0) 20 3657 0050
------------------------------- ---------------------
Isabel de Salis/Beth St Brides Partners (Financial
Melluish PR) +44 (0) 20 7236 1177
------------------------------- ---------------------
Notes
Erris Resources plc (EPIC: ERIS.L) is an AIM quoted, European
focused, discovery driven consulting and exploration company,
supported by the Canadian mining major, Osisko Gold Royalties,
which has a 18.9% interest in the Company. The Company has a
portfolio of gold projects in Scotland, Sweden and Norway and zinc
and base metals assets in Ireland, which it is looking to further
build on. Led by a highly qualified team with extensive corporate
and sector experience, Erris's strategy is to create shareholder
value through commercial discovery of base or precious metal assets
in proven mineral districts and in favourable European
jurisdictions.
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END
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