Last checked at 2 Nov 2012 12:13
The following amendment has been made to the announcement released on 2 November 2012 at 7:00 a.m..
Following Admission, the Company's enlarged issued share capital will comprise 151,362,046 ordinary shares with voting rights. The Company does not hold any shares in treasury. This figure of 151,362,046 ordinary shares may be used by shareholders in the Company as the denominator for the calculations by which they will determine if they are required to notify their interest in, or a change in their interest in, the share capital of the Company under the FSA's Disclosure and Transparency Rules.
It should read:
Following Admission, the Company's enlarged issued share capital will comprise 121,666,674 ordinary shares with voting rights. The Company does not hold any shares in treasury. This figure of 121,666,674 ordinary shares may be used by shareholders in the Company as the denominator for the calculations by which they will determine if they are required to notify their interest in, or a change in their interest in, the share capital of the Company under the FSA's Disclosure and Transparency Rules.
All other details remain unchanged.
The full amended text is shown below.
Sula Iron & Gold plc / Index: AIM / Epic: SULA / Sector: Natural Resources
2 November 2012
Sula Iron & Gold plc (`Sula' or `the Company') £450,000 placing to fast-track Sula's Sierra Leone iron project and initiate drilling campaign - REPLACEMENT
Sula Iron & Gold plc, an iron ore and gold exploration company focussed on Sierra Leone, is pleased to announce that, as a result of market demand, it has raised a further £450,000 by way of a placing of 7,500,000 new ordinary shares in the capital of the Company (`the Placing Shares'), at a price of 6 pence per Placing Share together with Warrants to subscribe for ordinary shares (`the Placing'). Placees will receive one Warrant for every two Placing Shares subscribed for, exercisable at 8p per share for a period of twelve months from today. The Placing has been conducted by Northland Capital Partners Limited and Beaufort International Associates.
The funds raised will be utilised to fast-track the development of Sula's 153 sq km iron ore and gold licence area (`the Project') in the mineral rich Sula Mountain Range in Sierra Leone, which is contiguous to African Minerals' operational Tonkolili iron mine which hosts a 12.8 billion tonne resource, to a drill ready status during Q1 2013 and undertake a drilling programme to confirm the Project's economic potential.
On Sula's admission to AIM earlier this month, the Company stated that it planned to complete two additional magnetometer surveys at the Project in Q4 2012 to further confirm the presence of banded iron formation (`BIF') at surface and the extension of magnetic anomalies from the Tonkolili licence into the Sula licence. Having conducted further analysis of the exploration data, which included an initial magnetometer survey completed in June 2012, Sula has implemented a revised exploration programme which it believes will fast-track the advancement of the Project and unlock the licence area's iron ore and gold resource potential.
The revised work programme will include acquisition and interpretation of high resolution satellite imagery; detailed mapping to ascertain the source of gold mineralisation; and detailed mapping of the outcropping BIF mineralisation to better define the spatial extent of near surface direct shipping ore (`DSO'). The Company is also planning to excavate a number of trenches across DSO outcrops which will facilitate channel sampling of these zones in preparation for drill targeting ahead of a planned Q1 2013 drilling programme.
Sula's Chief Executive Nick Warrell said: "Our revised exploration programme will accelerate the progression of our licence area which has been identified as having outcropping BIF with DSO potential to a drill ready status by Q1 2013. This is a major advancement in terms of the Project's development and exploration schedule as we look to define the iron ore resource potential of the Project and enhance its attributable value in the near term.
"In tandem, reconnaissance work and field mapping will be conducted in the northern part of the licence where extensive artisanal gold workings indicate the potential for a primary greenstone-hosted gold deposit. Previous grab samples in the area have assayed up to 4.92 g/t Au, giving the project dual commodity exposure. As part of the gold exploration programme, the Company is planning to re-log and re-sample historic diamond drill core. By fast-tracking the exploration and development of both the iron ore and gold mineralisation in our licence area, with the aim of delineating a JORC compliant resource, we believe we can rapidly advance the project up the development curve to enhance shareholder value."
Q4 2012/ Q1 2013 Exploration Programme
Data Review / Produce GIS Database
A significant amount of work has been completed to date within the Company's 153 sq km licence area. Historic exploration work included extensive surficial geochemical sampling, a shallow RAB drilling programme and over 5,000 metres of diamond drilling. Sula intend to re-log and re-sample the drill core and incorporate this data into a modern geographical information system ("GIS") database. The historic drill core should provide significant information on bedrock geology, alteration signatures and mineralisation styles.
Creation of a verified and integrated GIS database, which incorporates historic information and the Company's recent exploration data, will allow more effective spatial interpretation of data and streamlined integration of future exploration work.
High Resolution Satellite Imagery
In tandem with producing a new GIS Database, Sula plans to acquire high resolution satellite imagery across the whole licence which will provide important lithological and structural information and allow for more effective sampling, mapping and ultimately drill targeting. Integrated GIS and satellite data will also allow Sula to rapidly conduct reconnaissance between the known prospects, where there is potential for additional iron and gold mineralisation. Importantly, imagery will provide detailed spatial information on alluvial workings which will assist with vectoring to the source of mineralisation.
Field Mapping and Trenching- Iron Ore
Sula plans to commence a detailed mapping and sampling programme of the outcropping BIF mineralisation in November 2012 in conjunction with a scout trenching programme planned to commence in December 2012. Trenches will be excavated to a depth of between 2 to 4 metres across areas with the highest grade and most extensive BIF signature. This will allow Sula to channel sample continuous exposure and provide important information on grade and thickness relationships and structural features not obvious in surface outcrop. Trenching and channel sampling is an important pre-requisite to fine tuning drill targets. The programme will give a clearer indication on the overall size of BIF outcrop, distribution of the oxidised hematite cap and major structural elements. The Company is confident that the oxidised hematite cap has direct shipping ore (`DSO') potential which would greatly enhance the economics of the Project. Additionally the trenching will allow Sula to accurately pinpoint the locations of the drilling rig for the proposed core drilling programme in Q1 2013.
Priority will be given to the ridge coincident with the magnetic anomaly at Area 1 (see figure 9-2 of CPR), in order to assess the potential for oxidised BIF along this large structure. A key component of the mapping will be to locate structures cross cutting the BIF, which act as conduits for oxidising meteoric fluids, creating favourable conditions for formation of oxidised and enriched DSO ores. This structural relationship has been observed at the Tonkolili iron ore deposit.
Field Mapping - Gold
The overall geological setting, presence of extensive artisanal gold workings, and evidence from historic work and recent work by mining consultants SRKES, demonstrates the significant potential of the licence to host gold mineralisation. However, to date there appears to be little understanding of the source area, style of mineralisation or conceptual exploration models.
Development of the unified GIS database and reinterpretation of the historic data will provide an initial understanding of the gold potential and allow for conceptual models to be generated. Mapping of artisanal workings using high resolution satellite base maps will provide significant information on the source area and landscape evolution. Field testing of this data and scout mapping of priority areas will then be conducted to better understand the potential extent of gold mineralisation and allow prioritisation of advanced targets. This will allow the design of appropriate follow-up sampling, trenching and ultimately drill programmes focussed on gold. This reconnaissance mapping should provide sufficient information to generate conceptual models and showcase the gold potential of the licence.
The Placing
The Placing Shares will, when issued, rank pari passu in all respects with the existing ordinary shares of the Company. Application will be made to the London Stock Exchange for the Placing Shares to be admitted to trading on AIM (`the Admission'). It is expected that Admission will become effective and that dealings in the Placing Shares will commence at 8.00am on 8 November 2012.
Following Admission, the Company's enlarged issued share capital will comprise 121,666,674 ordinary shares with voting rights. The Company does not hold any shares in treasury. This figure of 121,666,674 ordinary shares may be used by shareholders in the Company as the denominator for the calculations by which they will determine if they are required to notify their interest in, or a change in their interest in, the share capital of the Company under the FSA's Disclosure and Transparency Rules.
**ENDS** For further information please visit www.sulairongold.com or contact thefollowing:Brian Moritz Sula Iron & Gold plc + 44 (0) 7976 994300 James Caithie / Avi Cairn Financial Advisers LLP +44 (0) 20 7148 7900Robinson John-Henry Wickes / Alice Northland Capital Partners +44 (0) 20 7796 8800Lane Limited Chris Theis Merchant Securities Limited +44 (0) 20 7628 2200 Felicity Edwards St Brides Media and Finance +44 (0) 20 7236 1177 Ltd Charlotte Heap St Brides Media and Finance +44 (0) 20 7236 1177 Ltd
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