TIDMBRES
RNS Number : 7533X
Blencowe Resources PLC
27 April 2023
Date: 27 April 2023 Blencowe Resources Plc
("Blencowe" or the "Company")
Strategic Funding Partner for Orom-Cross Graphite Project
Development Finance Corporation ("DFC") engaged to fund 50% of
Project Definitive Feasibility Study ("DFS") costs by way of a
Technical Assistance Grant
Highlights:
-- Blencowe passes key hurdle for engagement with US project
development financial institution, the DFC.
-- US International Development Finance Corporation is America's
leading development finance institution that partners with the
private sector to provide finance solutions for project development
in markets deemed as critical.
-- DFC geared to provide funding assistance for Orom-Cross as
part of the US Government's strategic drive for further access to
critical minerals and metals, within its wider renewables
strategy.
-- Orom-Cross has successfully passed through the key Project
Screening test within DFC, with both Parties now moving to a
binding Grant Agreement.
-- Blencowe is seeking up to US$4.5 million as a Technical
Assistance Grant ("TAG") for Definitive Feasibility Study costs for
the Orom-Cross Graphite Project ("Project").
-- As part of the Grant Agreement DFC will require a right of
first refusal ("ROFR") on debt finance for the full project
implementation, which would give Blencowe a potential funding
solution ahead with a major financial institution.
Blencowe Resources Plc ("Blencowe" or the "Company") (LSE: BRES)
is pleased to announce it has passed the key Screening hurdle
within the DFC in order to move forward to secure a substantial
Technical Assistance Grant.
The process now moves to a Grant Agreement and other final
requirements to complete this funding solution. The TAG under
consideration for Orom-Cross is up to US$4.5M for costs associated
with the Definitive Feasibility Study and the terms are considered
advantageous to Blencowe as any repayment would only occur if and
when the project goes into production at a future date. The TAG
provides for DFC to pay 50% of agreed costs within the Orom-Cross
DFS, with Blencowe to provide the remainder.
Once consummated this relationship could also provide Orom-Cross
with a potential project funding solution as the TAG will require a
ROFR for debt on commercial terms for full project implementation.
Debt funding to build a mining operation remains one of the
principal challenges for all graphite projects hence this ROFR
would further de-risk Orom-Cross by adding an internationally
respected tier one financial institution as a key project supporter
for this funding ahead.
About International Development Finance Corporation
The DFC is the primary US Government finance institution set up
to provide financially sound funding solutions for private-sector
initiatives pertaining to critical challenges facing the world, in
this case the drive towards increased sustainability across the
planet. It is an agency of the United States federal government and
represents US interests.
DFC's lending capacity is used to provide loans, guarantees,
equity investments and political-risk insurance for private-sector
led development projects, feasibility studies and technical
assistance. DFC invests across several sectors with stated goals of
empowerment, innovation, investment into Africa and climate
change.
Orom-Cross is directly linked with several of these goals. It
may ultimately become one of the largest graphite producing
operations in the world, over a very long mine life, delivering a
concentrate as end-product which is a non-replaceable input
component to batteries. These batteries provide the means to store
energy across many different renewable energy applications as well
as to replace vehicles powered by fossil fuels with electric
vehicles ("EVs"). Electric vehicles are powered by lithium-ion
batteries which have more graphite within them than any other metal
(up to 70kgs graphite per battery) and EV demand is accelerating at
a rate where it is doubling every few years, and expected to
continue exponentially into the future. Graphite is therefore high
on the US Government critical metals and minerals list and securing
long term supply of graphite is a key strategy.
Orom-Cross will also deliver a greener graphite product than
many other producers through a variety of production initiatives,
including the use of hydro-power for all mining and processing
energy requirements. Orom-Cross aims to become one of the leading
sustainable mining projects worldwide and this is considered very
important in a rapidly changing landscape where every participant
along the EV supply chain will be audited on their sustainability
credentials by OEMs.
Cameron Pearce, Executive Chairman commented;
"This milestone represents a significant step forward in the
development of Orom-Cross. We have now further de-risked the
Project by introducing a high quality funding partner that will
ultimately cover a substantial portion of the costs to complete the
DFS.
This same partner is a highly respected international financial
institution that may also deliver a debt funding solution for the
construction of the plant and associated infrastructure once we
move into the implementation stage, which adds another dimension
altogether. We are therefore covering several important bases here
to provide an all-encompassing funding solution to ensure that we
can successfully bring Orom-Cross into production over the medium
term once we have completed our final feasibility studies. By doing
this as a Technical Assistance Grant Blencowe is importantly
retaining 100% ownership in the Orom-Cross Project as we believe
the completion of the DFS will add significant additional value
ahead, which we want to retain in full for our shareholders.
DFC is a tremendous partner for Blencowe given its considerable
experience assisting private-sector companies through project
development stage and into production. DFC has experience of both
the continent and the country we are operating within, as well as
expertise dealing with Governments and other stakeholders. All
parties understand the tremendous value that Orom-Cross presents
going forward within a rapidly accelerating renewable energy
market, and more specifically a rampant lithium-ion battery EV
market."
For further information please contact:
Blencowe Resources Plc www.blencoweresourcesplc.com
Sam Quinn Tel: +44 (0)1624 681 250
info@blencoweresourcesplc.com
Investor Relations Tel: +44 (0) 7891 677 441
Sasha Sethi sasha@flowcomms.com
Tavira Securities Tel: +44 (0)20 3192 1733
Jonathan Evans jonathan.evans@tavirasecurities.com
First Equity Limited Tel: +44(0)20 7330 1833
Jason Robertson jasonrobertson@firstequitylimited.com
Twitter https://twitter.com/BlencoweRes
LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/72382491/admin/
Background
Orom-Cross Graphite Project
Orom-Cross is a potential world class graphite project both by
size and end-product quality, with a high component of more
valuable larger coarse flakes within the deposit.
A 21-year Mining Licence for the project was issued by the
Ugandan Government in 2019 following extensive historical work on
the deposit. Blencowe completed a successful Pre-Feasibility Study
on the Project in July 2022 and has now moved into the Definitive
Feasibility Study phase as it drives towards first production.
Orom-Cross presents as a large, shallow open-pitable deposit,
with a maiden JORC Indicated & Inferred Mineral Resource of
24.5Mt @ 6.0% TGC (Total Graphite Content). This Resource has been
defined from only 2% of the total tenement area which presents
considerable upside potential ahead. Development of the resource is
expected to benefit from a low strip ratio and free dig operations,
thereby ensuring lower operating and capital costs.
This information is provided by RNS, the news service of the
London Stock Exchange. RNS is approved by the Financial Conduct
Authority to act as a Primary Information Provider in the United
Kingdom. Terms and conditions relating to the use and distribution
of this information may apply. For further information, please
contact rns@lseg.com or visit www.rns.com.
RNS may use your IP address to confirm compliance with the terms
and conditions, to analyse how you engage with the information
contained in this communication, and to share such analysis on an
anonymised basis with others as part of our commercial services.
For further information about how RNS and the London Stock Exchange
use the personal data you provide us, please see our Privacy
Policy.
END
UPDEALLXAFKDEFA
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
April 27, 2023 10:22 ET (14:22 GMT)
Blencowe Resources (LSE:BRES)
Historical Stock Chart
Von Dez 2024 bis Jan 2025
Blencowe Resources (LSE:BRES)
Historical Stock Chart
Von Jan 2024 bis Jan 2025
