Sunrise Resources PLC Regulatory News (SRES)

23 February 2021

SUNRISE RESOURCES PLC

("Sunrise" or "the Company")

Project Updates & Company Presentation

CS Pozzolan-Perlite Project, Nevada, USA

Natural Pozzolan

On 13 January 2021, the Company announced the successful delivery of a 500-ton sample of natural pozzolan to a large cement and ready-mix company (CRMC) in the western USA. The CRMC cannot be identified at this stage for commercial reasons.

The CRMC has advised that the material is scheduled to be ground by the end of March and will then be utilized in a number of commercial concrete pours.

The Company has commissioned independent strength testing of mortar blocks made using a 20% substitution of ordinary Portland cement with natural pozzolan from a sub-sample of the 500-ton bulk sample in accordance with ASTM C618 (the test standard for natural pozzolan). Results show a mortar strength well in excess of the requirements of ASTM C618 after just 7 days curing. This result is consistent with previous laboratory testing of CS natural pozzolan by both the Company and the CRMC. Accordingly, the Company is expecting positive results from the CRMC's commercial trials once complete.

Perlite

Further to its announcement of 16 November 2020, the Company has been advised by potential customers who are trialing the Company's raw perlite that they have experienced exceptional demand for horticultural perlite in 2021 with one reporting the highest demand in its decades-long history and a large backlog in orders that need to be filled.

This is a very positive indicator for the Company's development plans. However, as a result these potential customers have been reluctant to cease commercial production in order to use their production facilities to test the Company's product and as a result testing was delayed, cut short and, in one case, not yet started. Only one potential customer has provided detailed feedback to date, describing the test as "promising but inconclusive". The expanded perlite product was described as having a good, low, bulk density and it had a good white colour, but it was too fine grained.

Particle size distribution in the raw perlite feed is largely a function of the crushing and screening process and is important in determining the particle size distribution of the expanded product where a coarse particle size distribution is required for horticultural perlite.

The Company's testing and analysis shows that during the crushing and screening process carried out by the Company's contractor the screens operated inefficiently resulting in over-crushing of the perlite and the inclusion of too much fine perlite in the products and that this is likely to have adversely affected the quality of the expanded product.

The supply of a coarser particle size can be resolved with small adjustments to the crushing and screening process but in this case only 100 tons of material was available for processing and there was insufficient opportunity to optimise the crusher and screen settings.

It is important to note that another of the potential customers has previously reported a very positive test on the Company's perlite using perlite taken from the exact same location, but which did not contain so many fines (see news release of 14 August 2019). Consequently, the Company has further reason to believe that the identified expansion issue can be resolved with delivery of raw perlite having a coarser particle size distribution.

The Company is now working with its crushing and screening contractor to modify the processing circuit to achieve a coarser product for further trials. The contractor has indicated that a process plant should be available for late March/early April. A larger bulk sample, 200 tons of raw perlite, is already on hand for this work.

Alongside the opportunities for horticultural perlite, the Company is also continuing its evaluation of production opportunities for industrial grades of perlite which make up 84% of the perlite market and which have been produced successfully from CS project perlite at a laboratory scale.

Bakers Gold Project, Australia

The Company is pleased to advise that its plans for drilling various gold targets at its Bakers Gold Project are progressing well and that a drill rig is provisionally booked for a drill start at the end of March.

The proposed drill programme will comprise five reverse circulation drill holes between 100 and 200m deep to test three separate gold targets which include old mine workings, areas of gold nugget production and a gold-in-soil geochemical anomaly.

Further information will be provided once a firm start date is secured.

Company Presentation, Q & A Opportunity

On the Wednesday 3 March 2021, at 11.00am, the Chairman of the Company, Patrick Cheetham, will be making a webinar presentation and interested parties will be invited to register and submit questions in advance to the meeting.

Further details will be published via an RNS Reach announcement before Friday 26 February.

This announcement contains inside information as defined in Article 7 of EU Regulation 596/2014. 

Further information:

Notes:

Forward Looking Statements.

The news release may contain certain statements and expressions of belief, expectation or opinion which are forward-looking statements, and which relate, inter alia, to the Company's proposed strategy, plans and objectives or to the expectations or intentions of the Company's directors. Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other important factors beyond the control of the Company that could cause the actual performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from such forward-looking statements. Accordingly, you should not rely unduly on any forward-looking statements and save as required by the AIM Rules for Companies or by law, the Company does not accept any obligation to disseminate any updates or revisions to such forward-looking statements.

Covid-19

To date the Covid-19 pandemic has not affected the progress of the Company's projects. Mining is considered an essential industry in Nevada and existing operations are progressing largely as normal, as is mineral exploration. However, the future impact of Covid infections in Nevada and more widely in the US is unpredictable. Travel bans are still in place between the US and the UK and many US companies have self-imposed internal travel bans. These factors have the potential to negatively affect and delay the Company's plans.

Qualified Person Information

The information in this release has been compiled and reviewed by Mr. Patrick Cheetham (MIMMM, MAusIMM) who is a qualified person for the purposes of the AIM Note for Mining and Oil & Gas Companies. Mr. Cheetham is a Member of the Institute of Materials, Minerals & Mining and also a member of the Australasian Institute of Mining & Metallurgy.

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Shares in the Company trade on AIM. EPIC: "SRES". Website: www.sunriseresourcesplc.com