TIDMCMRS
RNS Number : 7660Z
Critical Mineral Resources PLC
16 January 2024
16 January 2024
Critical Mineral Resources PLC
('CMR' or the 'Company')
Acquisition of 26 Moroccan permits
Critical Mineral Resources plc ('CMR' or the 'Company), the
exploration and development company focused on clean energy metals
in Morocco, is pleased to announce that it has acquired 26
exploration permits in central Morocco prospective for copper,
antimony, tungsten, lead-zinc and gold. CMR has acquired the
permits through the acquisition of Hesperis Resources SARL, a
Moroccan company.
The acquisition transforms CMR's incubator portfolio in terms of
the Company's footprint of prospective ground in Morocco and its
exposure to a wider range of critical metals and minerals. The
Hesperis permits are located in the Rabat, Beni-Mellal, Agadir and
Errachidia administrative regions and cover approximately 400 km(2)
. These regions boast a number of historical and current mining
sites with established road and power infrastructure.
Reflecting Hesperis' confidence in the opportunity the permitted
ground offers and CMR's ability to develop it, its shareholders
have agreed to an all-share transaction that sees CMR issue 3.0
million shares to the owners of Hesperis at completion, followed by
1.5 million shares deliverable at the start of drilling. As a sign
of their commitment to the project the Hesperis shareholders have
also agreed to a ten-month lock-in period.
Transaction highlights
-- The acquisition of 26 exploration permits [1] prospective for copper, antimony, tungsten, lead-zinc and gold,
wholly in line with CMR's stated strategy of targeting and acquiring clean energy development assets in Morocco.
-- The permitted area covers approximately 400 km2 across in recognised and well-established mining regions, which
boast numerous existing mining businesses in production along with the required infrastructure.
-- The newly acquired permits ensure CMR now has meaningful exposure to a broad range of clean energy materials
across permitted areas of significant geographic scale.
-- The agreement is split into two stages, with an Initial Consideration of GBP150,000 payable by the issue of
3,000,000 ordinary shares to be issued at a price of 5p per share, followed by Deferred Consideration of
GBP75,000 payable by the issue of 1,500,000 shares, conditional on CMR electing to commence exploration drilling
on any one of the Hesperis permits.
Noureddine Sabraoui, the Company's Chief Operating Officer, is a
25% beneficial owner of Hesperis. As such, the transaction is
considered to be a related party transaction. The directors of CMR
confirm that having exercised reasonable care, skill and diligence,
the related party transaction is fair and reasonable insofar as the
shareholders of Critical Mineral Resources are concerned.
Hesperis portfolio summary
CMR's focus is developing Moroccan commodity projects that have
the clear potential to support the transition to clean energy and
quickly advance to production and cash generation. The Hesperis
project portfolio provides exposure to prospective ground in
several distinct metallogenic regions.
Sixteen of the permits are located east of Casablanca in the
Rabat and Beni Mellal administrative regions, as shown in Figure 1
below.
Further south in the Souss-Massa (Agadir is the capital) and
Draa-Tafilalet (Errachidia is the capital) regions, the permits are
prospective for copper, silver, barite, oligiste (foliated iron
oxide) and manganese.
Charlie Long, Chief Executive Officer of CMR PLC, commented:
"The acquisition of the Hesperis permits marks a key milestone
in Critical Mineral Resource's journey. The Company now possesses a
significant opportunity through its ongoing roll-up of permits
across a sizeable footprint within well-established Moroccan mining
territories. Critically, we now have excellent momentum as we
continue to deliver against our stated strategy of developing an
exciting portfolio of assets with the potential to bring minerals
vital for the clean energy revolution into production and cash
generation. We are delighted to welcome the Hesperis owners as
shareholders to the business".
Figure 1: Map showing Hesperis permits
Source: Company
Figure 2: Map showing Rabat and Beni-Mellal region permits
Source: Company
Critical Mineral Resources plc info@cmrplc.com
Charles Long, Chief Executive Officer
Novum Securities
Jon Belliss +44 (0) 20 7399 9425
---------------------
Hudson Sandler (Financial PR)
Charlie Jack +44 (0) 207 796 4133
---------------------
Notes To Editors
Critical Mineral Resources (CMR) plc is an exploration and
development company focused on developing assets that produce key
commodities essential for renewable energy, battery storage and
electrification to support the clean energy revolution. These
commodities are widely recognised as being at the start of a supply
and demand supercycle.
CMR is building a diversified portfolio of high-quality metals
exploration and development projects in Morocco, focusing on
copper, nickel, manganese, cobalt, and potentially rare earths. CMR
identified Morocco as an ideal mining-friendly jurisdiction that
meets its acquisition and operational criteria. The country is
perfectly located to supply raw materials to Europe and possesses
excellent prospective geology, infrastructure and attractive
permitting, tax and royalty conditions. In 2023, the Company
acquired an 80% stake in leading Moroccan exploration and
geological services company Atlantic Research Minerals SARL.
Since taking over the CMR in 2022, the current management has
completed a comprehensive strategic review and restructuring of the
business and implemented its clear strategy to maximise exploration
and resource development opportunities for the benefit of all
stakeholders. The Company is listed on the London Stock Exchange
(CMRS.L). More information regarding the Company can be found at
www.cmrplc.com
[1] the main exploration permit type in Morocco is the permis de
recherche. Under Moroccan law, permis de recherche are valid for an
initial three year term renewable once for four years
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