Strategic Minerals Regulatory News (SML)

The information contained within this announcement is deemed by the Company to constitute inside information as stipulated under the Market Abuse Regulations (EU) No. 596/2014 ('MAR') which has been incorporated into UK law by the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018. 

21 April 2022

Strategic Minerals plc

("Strategic Minerals", "SML" or the "Company")

Redmoor Update

10 Year Exploration Licence Extension

Strategic Minerals plc (AIM: SML; USOTC: SMCDY), a profitable producing mineral company, is pleased to announce that its 100% owned subsidiary Cornwall Resources Limited ("CRL") has signed a 10-year extension to its existing Redmoor exploration licence agreement.

Highlights:

· Redmoor Exploration Licence extended to 2037

· 25-year Mining Lease option confirmed

· General Permitted Development Order ("GPDO") application in progress

· Recent commodity price increases likely to result in further upside to project's internally estimated US $163m NPV (8%) despite general increases in mining costs

The Redmoor exploration licence which provides the rights to explore over the entire licence area was due to expire in 2027, this has now been extended to a new end date of 18 October 2037. There remains a mining lease option which provides the right for CRL to enter into a 25-year mining lease (renewable for a further 25 years) over any part of the licence area. During the exploration licence period, a modest annual licence fee is payable to the vendor which converts to a 3% net smelter return vendor royalty on mining commencement.

The original exploration licence was entered into by New Age Exploration Limited in October 2012, whereby the rights were acquired via an exploration licence and mining lease option arrangement, over a 23km2 area surrounding the Redmoor deposit in East Cornwall.

CRL's most recent updated inferred mineral resource was produced by Cornwall based consultants Geologica (UK) and totals 11.7 mt @ 0.56% WO3, 0.16% Sn, and 0.50% Cu.

A GPDO application is currently in progress; seeking approval to conduct a focused drilling programme which will target new tin prospects in the Redmoor West area. The earlier trenching work, in this area, has indicated potential near surface tin deposits which could be likely to accelerate mining commencement.

With tin, tungsten and copper prices all significantly higher than those utilised in the Company's update on the project's projected economics (21 November 2021), the Directors believe that the project after tax NPV at 8% pa is expected to further increase from the US $163m previously reported. This is despite an expected increase in mining costs since this time.

Commenting, Peter Wale, Executive Director of Strategic Minerals and Director of CRL, said:

"We are pleased to have extended the original exploration licence by an additional 10 years. This secures our footprint in the region and adds long term confidence to the tenure of the Redmoor project, which comes at a time when Cornish assets are starting to attract ever greater interest and rising valuations.

"Tin continues to attract wider coverage both within and beyond the mining community and this has been reflected in the substantial tin price appreciation since SML took full ownership of the project. On top of that, tungsten is also quietly edging up and is now approaching 8-year highs. There has been significant US oil and gas industry demand for tungsten.

"The evolving Critical Minerals agenda is also seeing companies consider more carefully where they are sourcing materials. Heightened concerns on critical mineral supply in the US have also resulted in the Defense Production Act being invoked to increase domestic production of minerals used in both the EV space and the wider clean energy economy. Last month Canadian miners secured a total of C$3.8 billion in potential government funding to develop critical minerals necessary for electric vehicles and other technologies. We look forward to the UK Government taking a similar stance."

Notes to Editors

Strategic Minerals plc:

Strategic Minerals plc is an AIM-quoted, profitable operating minerals company. It has operations in the United States of America and Australia along with a development project in the UK. The Company is focused on utilising its operating cash flows, along with capital raisings, to develop high quality projects aimed at supplying the metals and minerals the Board considers likely to benefit from future supply and demand factors.

In September 2011, Strategic Minerals acquired the distribution rights to the Cobre magnetite tailings dam project in New Mexico, USA, a cash-generating asset, which it brought into production in 2012 and which continues to provide a revenue stream for the Company. This operating revenue stream is utilised to cover company overheads and invest in progressing the Company's development projects.

In May 2016, the Company entered into an agreement with New Age Exploration Limited and, in February 2017, acquired 50% of the Redmoor Tin and Tungsten project in Cornwall, UK. The bulk of the funds from the Company's investment were utilised to complete an initial drilling programme that year. This programme resulted in a significant upgrade of the resource. This was followed in 2018 with a 12-hole drilling programme which resulted in the resource update announced in February 2019. In March 2019, the Company entered into arrangements to acquire the balance of the Redmoor Tin and Tungsten project. This was completed on 24 July 2019.

In March 2018, the Company completed the acquisition of the Leigh Creek Copper Mine situated in the copper rich belt of South Australia and brought the project into production in April 2019.