Last checked at 30 Sep 2022 07:00
THIS ANNOUNCEMENT CONTAINS INSIDE INFORMATION AS STIPULATED UNDER THE UK VERSION OF THE MARKET ABUSE REGULATION NO 596/2014 WHICH IS PART OF ENGLISH LAW BY VIRTUE OF THE EUROPEAN (WITHDRAWAL) ACT 2018, AS AMENDED. ON PUBLICATION OF THIS ANNOUNCEMENT VIA A REGULATORY INFORMATION SERVICE, THIS INFORMATION IS CONSIDERED TO BE IN THE PUBLIC DOMAIN.
30 September 2022
Capital Metals plc
("Capital Metals" or the "Company")
AGM Statement
Capital Metals (AIM: CMET), a mineral sands company approaching mine development stage at the Eastern Minerals project in Sri Lanka (the "Project"), announces that James Leahy, Non-Executive Director, will make the following statement at the Annual General Meeting of the Company, which he will Chair, to be held later today:
"The last 18 months have been an extremely busy period for the Company culminating in the grant of our Project's first two Industrial Mining Licences.
A great deal of work has gone into that process, including the approval of the Environmental Impact Assessment. That we were able to progress these IMLs during the peak of Sri Lanka's recent economic difficulties reflects both the quality of the Project and our shared interest in getting it into production as fast as possible.
The IMLs were a major step forward in advancing the ongoing discussions with offtakers, debt providers and other strategic funding parties. While the details of discussions with these parties are commercially sensitive, I am pleased to confirm that we are in discussions with a range of parties including large pigment producers out of Asia. Some of those parties have concluded site visits, conducted detailed testing and analysis of our proposed mineral products, and reviewed our Development Plan. As previously stated, it is the Company's expectation that any agreement would contribute capital to help fund the development of the Project.
The focus of the Company is on finalising those discussions, concluding the lease agreement for Oluvil Port, which the Ports Authority has formally confirmed it wishes to enter into, and further refining the technical, engineering, and economic aspects of the Project in preparation for construction.
The strong current and forecast prices for our minerals, coupled with the clear potential for further expansion of our high-grade resource, provides excellent potential to further enhance the economics of the Project which are already compelling. We thank our shareholders for their continuing support as we remain focused on our objective of delivering sustainable value to you, Sri Lanka, and our local communities."
A presentation will be given by Michael Frayne, Chief Executive Officer, and a copy of this is now available within the Investor Relations section of the Company's website at www.capitalmetals.com.
For further information, please visit the website or contact:
Capital Metals plc Michael Frayne (CEO) James Mahony (CFO) | Via Vigo Consulting |
Vigo Consulting (Investor Relations) Ben Simons / Peter Jacob | +44 (0)20 7390 0234 capitalmetals@vigoconsulting.com |
SPARK Advisory Partners (Nominated Adviser) Neil Baldwin / James Keeshan | +44 (0)20 3368 3554 |
WH Ireland Limited (Joint Broker) Harry Ansell / Katy Mitchell | +44 (0)20 7220 1666 |
Tavira Financial (Joint Broker) Jonathan Evans / Oliver Stansfield | +44 (0)20 7100 5100 |
About Capital Metals
Capital Metals is developing the Eastern Minerals Project in Sri Lanka, approximately 220km east of Colombo. The Project is one of the highest-grade mineral sands projects globally, with a current JORC Resource of 17.2Mt with an average grade of 17.6% Total Heavy Minerals, and potential for significant resource extension. In May 2022, a third-party Preliminary Economic Assessment ("PEA") provided an NPV for the Project of US$155-235M based on existing resources, with further identified optimisation potential. The PEA outlined an attractive low funding requirement of US$37.3M, with expansions funded through cashflows from the Project, which is forecast to deliver US$645M of revenue and net operating cashflows of US$391M.
CMET's goal is to become a high margin producer of mineral sands for the international market, with a commitment to applying best-in-class mining practices and bringing significant positive benefits to Sri Lanka and the local community. We expect over 300 direct new jobs to be created and over US$100m in direct government royalties and taxes to be paid.
For more information, visit our website www.capitalmetals.com and follow us on social media:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/capitalmetals/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/MetalsCapital