TIDMKEFI
RNS Number : 0960W
Kefi Gold and Copper PLC
16 August 2022
16 August 2022
KEFI Gold and Copper plc
("KEFI" or the "Company")
Regulatory Progress in Ethiopia and Saudi Arabia
Investor Webinar midday London Wednesday 24 August 2022
KEFI (AIM: KEFI), the gold exploration and development company
with projects in the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia and
the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, is pleased to provide an operational
update on the activities of KEFI Minerals (Ethiopia) Ltd ("KME")
and Tulu Kapi Gold Mines Share Company ("TKGM") in Ethiopia, and
Gold & Minerals Ltd ("G&M") in Saudi Arabia.
An Investor Webinar will be held on Wednesday 24 August 2022 at
12.00 midday London time (see details below). A presentation will
be uploaded to the website on Monday 22 August 2022, which will be
presented at the webinar by senior operational executives.
Highlights
During July and August 2022, continued regulatory progress has
enabled KEFI with its preparations for project financings and
development of its portfolio of assets in Ethiopia and Saudi
Arabia. Notable developments are summarised below.
Ethiopia:
-- In July 2022 the Ministry of Mines endorsed historical
investment of c. US$80 million to 31 December 2020 to enable the
registration of KEFI's past equity investments and confirm the TKGM
capital structure for our co-investors into TKGM;
-- In August 2022 the Ethiopian Prime Ministry endorsed that
both proposed TKGM project finance banks, being East Africa Trade
and Development Bank ("TDB") and Africa Finance Corporation
("AFC"), are permitted to proceed with the proposed combined c.
US$200M funding package with the same rights and protections;
-- Independent reports and advice were received from SLR
Consulting and Constellis, in relation to social licence and
security respectively, in August 2022. These reports were compiled
after consulting the relevant Ethiopian authorities and were
supportive of TKGM's proposed community and security plans for the
Project launch;
-- Throughout the period, KEFI continued detailed reporting to
the Ministry of Mines, with whom we reaffirmed plans for Project
launch in October 2022.
Saudi Arabia
-- The Ministry of Industry and Mines confirmed in August 2022
that the Jibal Qutman Gold Project should be fast-tracked to
development, having cleared the blockages which hindered progress
since a mining licence application was submitted in 2015. First
gold production from Jibal Qutman is targeted for 2024, around the
same time as applies to Tulu Kapi in Ethiopia;
-- An additional exploration licence was granted within the Wadi
Bidah Mineralisation Belt ("WBMB") at Abu Salal South in August
2022, reinforcing the growth potential of our large Hawiah
Copper-Gold discovery and the adjacent Al Godeyer prospects.
-- Jabal Hillit and Qunnah "Al Qassim" exploration licences were
awarded in July 2022, situated approximately 30km apart, and
straddling the prospective Ad Dawadimi and Afif terranes in the
eastern portion of the Arabian Shield in Saudi Arabia;
-- In August 2022, the Jadib Al Qahtanah exploration licence was
awarded, 45km east of the Nahad Ad Dahab mine, the principal
historic Saudi gold and silver mine;
-- So far during 2022 we have had more licences granted than in
the previous 14 years in Saudi Arabia, testament to the regulatory
overhaul in the country as well as our leading position in the
sector. Please see RNS of 12 July 2022 and 3 August 2022 for
further details, including some impressive field sampling
results.
KEFI Group
-- KEFI has been rapidly expanding its resource base for two
years and regulatory progress during July and August reinforces
that momentum. KEFI's beneficial interest in gold-equivalent
mineral resources has grown from 1.2 million ounces in mid-2020 to
2.1 million ounces at the end of 2021, with further growth underway
in 2022 and anticipated in the coming years;
-- Having three advanced projects in two countries has now
placed the Company in a stronger diversified position, with all
three also receiving higher regulatory support;
-- In April 2022 KEFI also significantly de-risked the parent
company balance sheet by raising GBP8 million of equity to repay
liabilities and reinforce project momentum. The Company today has
cash at bank and working capital facilities to execute on its
development plans as outlined.
-- The corporate equity issues over the past year have also seen
a number of institutional investors join the register;
-- The overall finance plan remains in accordance with previous
guidance (see Finance Director Report of 2021 Annual Report) with
all three projects involving project finance syndication, mostly at
project level.
Investor Webinar
The Company will provide a presentation and live webinar via the
Investor Meet Company platform on Wednesday 24 August 2022 at 12.00
midday London time.
The presentation is open to all existing and potential
shareholders. Questions can be submitted at any time during the
live presentation.
Investors can sign up to Investor Meet Company for free and add
to meet KEFI via:
https://www.investormeetcompany.com/kefi-gold-and-copper-plc/register-investor
The webinar will subsequently be available on the Company's
website at:
http://www.kefi-minerals.com/news/webcasts .
Market Abuse Regulation (MAR) Disclosure
This announcement contains inside information for the purposes
of Article 7 of the Market Abuse Regulation (EU) 596/2014 as it
forms part of UK domestic law by virtue of the European Union
(Withdrawal) Act 2018 ("MAR"), and is disclosed in accordance with
the Company's obligations under Article 17 of MAR.
Enquiries
KEFI Gold and Copper plc
Harry Anagnostaras-Adams (Managing Director) +357 99457843
John Leach (Finance Director) +357 99208130
SP Angel Corporate Finance LLP (Nominated
Adviser and Joint Broker) +44 (0) 20 3470 0470
Jeff Keating, Adam Cowl
Tavira Securities Limited (Joint Broker) +44 (0) 20 7100 5100
Oliver Stansfield, Jonathan Evans
WH Ireland Limited (Joint Broker) +44 (0) 20 7220 1666
Katy Mitchell, Andrew de Andrade
IFC Advisory Ltd (Financial PR and IR) +44 (0) 20 3934 6630
Tim Metcalfe, Florence Chandler
KEFI Gold and Copper plc
KEFI is focused primarily on the advancement of its three
development projects in Ethiopia and Saudi Arabia, plus its
pipeline of highly prospective exploration projects in these two
large jurisdictions of the under-explored Arabian-Nubian Shield.
KEFI targets that production at Tulu Kapi in Ethiopia and Jibal
Qutman in Saudi Arabia will, between them, generate cash flows for
capital repayments, further organic growth and dividends to
shareholders.
Both TKGM and G&M are technically guided and supported by
KEFI so that each of these operating joint venture companies as
soon as possible builds the local organisational structure suitable
for long term production as well as exploration and future
development opportunities.
KEFI Gold and Copper in Ethiopia
Ethiopia is currently undergoing a remarkable transformation
both politically and economically.
The Tulu Kapi gold project in western Ethiopia is being
progressed towards development, following a grant of a Mining
Licence in April 2015. No other mining project of this scale in
Ethiopia has been brought to Tulu Kapi's stage of advancement
during recent years and Tulu Kapi will be the first industrial
scale mine development in Ethiopia in over 30 years. It has taken
years of extensive technical re-design of the project, years of
overhaul by the Ethiopian authorities of financial policies which
previously hindered mining project finance and the patient and
cautious traversing by the Company of recent well-publicised events
within the country. The project has imposed many demands on a
regulatory system which the Ethiopian Government continues to
upgrade, determined to build a modern minerals sector. KEFI is
honored to play its part in this process and has assembled a
first-tier syndicate of international industry expert management,
contractors, banks and investors.
The Company has now refined contractual terms for project
construction and operation. Estimates include open pit gold
production of c. 140,000oz pa for a 7-year period. All-in
Sustaining Costs (including operating, sustaining capital,
royalties and closure but not including leasing and other financing
charges) remain c. US$800-1000/oz depending on the gold price. Tulu
Kapi's Ore Reserve estimate totals 15.4Mt at 2.1g/t gold,
containing 1.1Moz.
All aspects of the Tulu Kapi (open pit) gold project have been
reported in compliance with the JORC Code (2012) and subjected to
reviews by appropriate independent experts.
A Preliminary Economic Assessment has been published that
indicates the economic attractiveness of mining the underground
deposit adjacent to the Tulu Kapi open pit, after the start-up of
the open pit and after positive cash flows have begun to repay
project debts.
KEFI remains keen to re-commence its exploration of the
additional prospects it has successfully identified within the Tulu
Kapi district exploration area from within which the mining licence
was duly excised as a result of the successful discovery of the
Tulu Kapi deposit. Whilst most historical drilling was naturally of
the Tulu Kapi deposit, there was significant work done on many
further prospects which await follow-up.
Whilst awaiting regulatory permission to re-activate the
Company's Ethiopian exploration, which is critical for long term
planning for all stakeholders in the community as well as the
Company, the exploration focus has been successfully switched to
Saudi Arabia.
KEFI Gold and Copper in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
In 2009, KEFI formed Gold & Minerals Limited ("G&M") in
Saudi Arabia with local Saudi partner, ARTAR, to explore for gold
and associated metals in the Arabian-Nubian Shield. KEFI has a c.
30% interest in G&M.
ARTAR, on behalf of G&M, and G&M directly held over 16
Exploration Licence (EL) applications pending the introduction of
the new Mining Law. These new regulations have recently been
proclaimed and G&M has had seven new licences issued in the
past nine months - more licence grants than in the previous 14
years and all highly prospective and strategically important for
G&M, ELs are renewable for up to five years and bestow the
exclusive right to explore and to obtain a 30-year exploitation
(mining) licence within the area.
In addition, G&M has a Mining Licence Application over the
Jibal Qutman Gold Project which recent informal indications by the
authorities provide some confidence that the licence will be
granted shortly.
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