Oriole Resources Regulatory News (ORR)

Stratex International Plc / Index: AIM / Epic: STI / Sector: Mining

Stratex International Plc 

('Stratex' or 'The Company')

Stratex Completes Partnership Deal with Thani Emirates Resource Holdings

to form Thani Stratex Resources Ltd

Stratex International Plc, the AIM-quoted exploration and development company, is delighted to announce that, further to its press release dated 12th May 2014, it has completed the formation of a new East and North African-focussed exploration and development company in partnership with Thani Emirates Resource Holdings ('Thani'). Stratex and Thani have now combined their assets in the region into a new company Thani Stratex Resources Ltd ("ThaniStratex" or the "new company").

Highlights

· Stratex and Thani combine East and North African assets into new company, ThaniStratex- Stratex owns 40% and Thani 60%;

· The existing companies of, Stratex East Africa Ltd, owned 95% by Stratex and 5% by Thani, Thani Stratex Djibouti Limited, owned 49% by Stratex and 51% by Thani, and Thani Dubai Mining Limited, owned 100% by Thani, to be transferred to the new company together with the concessions owned by these companies.

· The concessions being transferred into the new company are; the Blackrock licences in Ethiopia, Okilla, Assal and Dimoli Khan licences in Djibouti and the Hodine and Wadi Kareem licenses in Egypt.

· Stratex and Thani will each contribute US$1 million initial working capital to assess and add value to priority projects;

· Third-party investment will be sought in the future to further advance ThaniStratex's portfolio prior to a planned listing on an appropriate stock exchange;

· David Hall has been appointed Chief Executive Officer ofthe new company and has now stepped down from the Stratex board;

· Stratex Chairman Christopher Hall to represent Stratex on ThaniStratex board.

Christopher Hall, Stratex Non-Executive Chairman, said: "Stratex is very pleased to have closed this deal which combines its assets in Ethiopia and Djibouti with those of our joint venture partner in Egypt. Further exploration to evaluate the undoubted potential of our properties in the region was going to require significant funding beyond our own resources which was not a good fit with Stratex's business model. We have barely scratched the surface of a major new gold bearing province with a few tens of thousands of metres of drilling. By entering into partnership with Thani, with its experience and track record in the region, we have ensured that we do justice to this exciting portfolio of properties where we see a clear analogy with the rift-related, epithermal gold province in Argentina. We also gain indirect exposure to Egypt where Centamin have demonstrated the geological potential through the development of the Sukhari mine, with in excess of 10 million oz of resource, and in time other jurisdictions in the region.

"Planning is well advanced for further drilling at Blackrock, in northern Ethiopia, and an initial drill programme at Oklila in Djibouti where the surface sampling of the Pandora structure has returned some of the best results we have seen in the region.

"David Hall, who has been responsible for our East African activities as an executive director, is a founder and former chairman of Stratex. He has been appointed Chief Executive of the new company and has stepped down from the board of Stratex to concentrate on growing an enlarged portfolio in ThaniStratex, funding it and, subject to market conditions, taking it public. David's enormous energy and conceptual geological thinking have been a great benefit to Stratex, and will be a challenge to replicate. However his input will continue to be available formally for the next six months and I am confident that as CEO of a Stratex associated company, our close and constructive relationship will continue to be of benefit to shareholders.

"On behalf of the entire board we wish him every success in this new venture and I look forward to providing whatever support I can as the Stratex representative on the board of ThaniStratex."

Further Details

Stratex and Thani have signed a definitive agreement to combine their interest in the region in a new company- Thani Stratex Resources Limited- that will target opportunities in the Arabian Nubian Shield and Afar region. Each company will contribute US$1million / £610,000 to fund this new initiative and will seek third-party investment in the future with a view ultimately to listing the company on an appropriate stock market.

Stratex will contribute its 95% interest in Stratex East Africa Limited, which owns the Blackrock licences, and its 49% interest in Thani Stratex Djibouti Limited, which owns the Okilla, Assal and Dimoli Khan licences. The value placed on the Stratex investment in these two companies totals some US$9million. Stratex's East African operations recorded a loss in 2013 of £929k.

In addition to its 5% interest in Stratex East Africa Limited and 51% interest in Thani Stratex Djibouti Limited, Thani will contribute its 100% interest in Thani Dubai Mining Limited, which owns the Hodine and Wadi Kareem licences in Egypt.

Following the transfer of the companies and the contribution of US$1million from each partner, Stratex will own a 40% equity stake in the new company, with Thani retaining the remaining 60%. Stratex Chairman, Christopher Hall will represent Stratex on the board of the new company.

Work on the ground will incorporate a follow up drill programme at the Blackrock licence in NE Ethiopia, followed by an initial drill programme at Oklila in Djibouti, arguably the most promising prospect in the former Stratex portfolio.

Stratex's Pandora epithermal gold discovery in the Oklila licence has previously returned high grade gold from channel-chip samples on the main 2.3 km-long structure (Press release dated 12th May 2014) and drilling will be undertaken to test epithermal veining that has been defined over a 10 km strike length.

At Stratex's Blackrock concession in Ethiopia, some 10,000 metres of drilling has already confirmed the presence of epithermal gold mineralization. Drilling of untested structures at Black Water and Magdala zones will commence in November.

Work will also focus on Thani's assets, namely the Wadi Kareem and Hodine concessions, previously identified and evaluated with AngloGold Ashanti. Both concessions are located in the Eastern Desert of Egypt and have similar geology to the >10Moz Sukari deposit. The Wadi Kareem concession is 418 sq. km and is approximately 35 km southwest of the Red Sea town of Quseir. Previous work identified that the Kareem Felsite has several similarities to Sukari and contains extensive surface quartz veins in a large felsic intrusive. Limited drilling has been undertaken and it is the view of ThaniStratex that further work is merited.

The Hodine concession is 1,190 sq. km. and is approximately 16 km west of the Red Sea coast and the community of Shalateen. Thani Dubai Mining Egypt, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Thani, had undertook 30,000 m of diamond and RC drilling on the Hutite prospect . At Anbat-Shakoosh, high grade gold veins are hosted within granite, again similar to Sukari, with wide disseminated gold mineralization in associated dikes. This mineralization is at surface and is open in all directions. The prospect is part of the ~10 km long Anbat-Shakoosh belt which has a number of mineralized intrusives. ThaniStratex see this as high priority for immediate work.

In addition to the existing portfolio, ThaniStratex will be in a strong position to consider acquisition of other assets in the region and additional capital will be sought by the new company in due course to achieve these objectives.

David Hall has now stepped down from the Stratex Board to concentrate on his role as Chief Executive Officer of the new company which is expected to be listed in due course; however, his services will continue to be available to Stratex for the next six months. Following David's departure the Company is considering new additions to the Board.

For further information on ThaniStratex's East African projects, please visit our website at http://www.stratexinternational.com/projects/. 

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For further information please visit www.stratexinternational.com, email info@stratexplc.com, or contact:

Notes to editors:

Stratex International is a well-funded AIM-quoted exploration and development company focussed on gold and high-value base metals in Turkey, East Africa and West Africa. Since listing on AIM in 2006, Stratex has had an impressive track record of successful exploration supported by joint-venture partnerships, both with major international mining companies and local companies to maximise the potential of its discoveries.

In December 2012 the Company announced the sale of its 30% interest in the Öksüt gold project for cash of 20 times its original US$1 million investment and retained a royalty of 1% up to a maximum additional value of US$20 million.

To date Stratex has discovered more than 2.2 million ounces of gold and 7.9 million ounces of silver, as well as 186,000 tonnes of copper. The Company has a robust cash balance and is therefore well-placed to advance its existing exploration programmes and is also actively seeking to acquire advanced projects that are at the drill-ready stage or even have identified resources, particularly in East Africa and West Africa.