REG - Condor Gold PLC - Condor Gold Raises £4.0m Via a Private Placement

Condor GoldAnnouncement

16/02/2021 07:01

RNS Number : 1784P
  
Condor Gold PLC
  
16 February 2021
  
 

 




 
 
 
 


Condor Gold plc
                                        
22a St. James's Square
London
SW1Y 4JH
Telephone    +44 020 74932784
 




16 February 2021
Condor Gold plc
("Condor", "Condor Gold" or the "Company")
Condor Gold Raises £4.0 Million Via a Private Placement of New Ordinary Shares 
 
Condor Gold (AIM: CNR; TSX: COG) is pleased to announce a placing of 9,523,810 new ordinary shares in the Company of 20p each ("Placing Shares") at a price of 42p per Placing Share (the "Placing Price"), including a Directors & CFO subscription of 4,871,414 Placing Shares ("Directors & CFO Subscription"), to raise in aggregate gross  proceeds of £4,000,000 (the "Placing") before expenses. The Placing has been arranged directly by the Company with institutional and other investors. 
Completion of the Placing is conditional, inter alia, upon receipt of funds by close of business on 24 February 2021 and admission of the Placing Shares to trading on AIM, expected to be on or around 1 March 2021. The Company has received conditional approval from the Toronto Stock Exchange (the "TSX") for the Placing. 
 
The Placing Shares are subject to resale restrictions into Canada which will expire four months and one day from the date of Admission of the Placing Shares to AIM. There are no restrictions on selling Placing Shares not sold to Canadian investors.
 
Mark Child, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Condor, commented:
"Condor Gold has conducted a private placement, issuing new ordinary shares representing 7.9% of the Company's existing issued share capital, to raise gross  proceeds of £4.0 million. The Placement was oversubscribed. Following the placement Condor will have a net cash position of approximately £8 million.  The Placement has been conducted quickly following an offer by Jim Mellon, Condor's largest shareholder, to invest a further £2 million in the Company. The Board decided to accept further £2 million primarily from existing shareholders.
 
"The placement proceeds will be used to advance the La India Project towards production and expand the gold mineral resource. Condor has successfully permitted 3 open pits at La India. Following the permitting of the Mestiza and America open pits, together with the La India open pit, Condor has 1.12M oz gold open pit Mineral Resources permitted for extraction, inclusive of a Mineral Reserve of 6.9Mt at 3.0g/t gold for 675,000 oz gold. 
 
"La India Project has total Indicated Mineral Resources of 9.85Mt at a grade of 3.6 g/t gold, for a total contained ounces of 1,140,000 oz gold and total Inferred Mineral Resources of 8.48Mt at a grade of 4.3 g/t gold, for a total contained ounces of 1,179,000 oz gold. A processing plant and associated mine site infrastructure is also permitted.
 
"The placement proceeds will be used to complete engineering and other technical studies, purchase the remaining 5% of the land in and around the minesite infrastructure, place a deposit on a processing plant, finance a 4,000m infill drilling program currently underway with two drill rigs within the high grade starter pits within the permitted la India open pit. The extra cash also allows Condor to continue with exploration activity aimed at demonstrating the potential for a 5 million oz Gold District at La India Project: the Company will commence a 5,000m drilling program on the Cacao vein in the near future."
 
 
Details of the Placing and Directors & CFO Subscription 
 
A total of 9,523,810 Placing Shares have been placed with placees at the Placing Price to raise gross proceeds of £4,000,000. Total fees or commissions payable to agents amount to £8,204.
 
As part of the Placing, the Company advises that through the Directors & CFO Subscription, four Directors of the Company, namely Mark Child,  Andrew Cheatle, Ian Stalker and Jim Mellon, along with Jeffrey Karoly (Chief Financial Officer), have subscribed for 14,270, 11,905, 71,429, 4,761,905 and 11,905 Placing Shares respectively, for a total of 4,871,414 Placing Shares. 
 
Jim Mellon has subscribed (the "Mellon Subscription"), through Galloway Limited, a limited company which is wholly owned by Burnbrae Group Limited, which is in turn wholly owned by Jim Mellon, for a total of 4,761,905 Placing Shares (the "Mellon Shares") for a sum of £2,000,000. Following completion of the Mellon Subscription, Jim Mellon shall own a direct and indirect aggregate shareholding of 25,051,368 Ordinary Shares or 19.2% of the Company. His direct interest will be in 2,889,883 Ordinary Shares and the indirect interest will be in 22,161,485 Ordinary Shares held through Galloway Limited. 
 
Andrew Cheatle has subscribed (the "Cheatle Subscription") for a total of 11,905 Placing Shares). Following completion of the Cheatle Subscription, Andrew Cheatle shall own directly and indirectly a shareholding of 130,955 Ordinary shares of the Company, representing 0.1% of the resultant issued share capital. 
 
Ian Stalker has subscribed (the "Stalker Subscription") through Promaco Consulting Services Limited, a limited company which is wholly owned by a trust for the Stalker family, for a total of 71,429 Placing Shares. Following completion of the Stalker Subscription, Ian Stalker shall have a direct or indirect interest in 238,799 Ordinary shares of the Company, representing 0.2% of the resultant issued share capital.
 
Mark Child has subscribed (the "Child Subscription") for a total of 14,270 Placing Shares. Following completion of the Child Subscription, Mark Child shall own directly and indirectly a shareholding of 4,215,000 Ordinary shares of the Company, representing 3.2% of the resultant issued share capital. 
 
Jeffrey Karoly has subscribed (the "Karoly Subscription") for a total of 11,905 Placing Shares. Following completion of the Karoly Subscription, Jeffrey Karoly shall own directly and indirectly a shareholding of 160,983 Ordinary shares of the Company, representing 0.1% of the resultant issued share capital.
 
Application will be made for the Placing Shares to be admitted to trading on AIM ("Admission"), with Admission of the Placing Shares expected to occur on or around 1 March 2021.  
  
The Placing Shares will rank pari passu with the existing Ordinary Shares, including the right to receive all dividends and other distributions declared after the date of their issue.
 
Following Admission of the Placing Shares, the Company will have 130,519,401 ordinary shares of 20p each in issue with voting rights and admitted to trading on AIM and  this figure may be used by shareholders in the Company as the denominator for the calculation by which they will determine if they are required to notify their interest in, or a change to their interest in, the share capital of the Company under the Financial Conduct Authority's Disclosure and Transparency Rules.
 
Related Party Transaction
 
The subscription by each of Jim Mellon (through Galloway Limited), Mark Child, Ian Stalker and Andrew Cheatle ("Directors Subscriptions") is a Related Party Transaction under Rule 13 of the AIM Rules for Companies by virtue of Jim Mellon, Andrew Cheatle, Ian Stalker and Mark Child being Directors of the Company and in the case of Jim Mellon being a 16.8% direct and indirect shareholder. Accordingly, the Independent Director, being Kate Harcourt, considers that, having consulted with the Company's Nominated Adviser, the terms of the Directors Subscriptions are fair and reasonable insofar as the Company's shareholders are concerned.  
 
Canadian Securities Law Matters
 
The Directors' Subscription will constitute a related party transaction pursuant to Multilateral Instrument 61-101 - Protection of Minority Security Holders in Special Transactions ("MI 61-101"). The Company is exempt from the requirements to obtain a formal valuation and minority shareholder approval in connection with the Directors' Subscription in reliance on sections 5.5(a) and 5.7(a), respectively, of MI 61-101, as neither the fair market value of the securities received by such parties nor the proceeds for such securities received by the Company exceeds 25% of the Company's market capitalisation as calculated in accordance with MI 61-101. The board of directors of the Company has approved the Placing, with Jim Mellon abstaining from voting.
 
A material change report with respect to the Placing is expected to be filed less than 21 days prior to the closing of the Placing. This time period is reasonable and necessary in the circumstances as the Company wishes to complete the transaction on an expedited basis for sound business reasons.
 
Special note concerning the Market Abuse Regulation 
 
This announcement contains inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of the Market Abuse Regulation (EU) 596/2014 as it forms part of UK domestic law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 ("MAR"), and is disclosed in accordance with the Company's obligations under Article 17 of MAR. Market soundings, as defined in MAR, were taken in respect of the Placing, with the result that certain persons became aware of inside information, as permitted by MAR. That inside information is set out in this announcement. Therefore, those persons that received inside information in a market sounding are no longer in possession of inside information relating to the Company and its securities.
 
- Ends - 
For further information please visit www.condorgold.com or contact:




Condor Gold plc


Mark Child, Chairman and CEO
+44 (0) 20 7493 2784


 




Beaumont Cornish Limited


 Roland Cornish and James Biddle
+44 (0) 20 7628 3396


 




SP Angel Corporate Finance LLP 
 


 
Ewan Leggat 
+44 (0) 20 3470 0470


 




Blytheweigh 


Tim Blythe and Megan Ray
+44 (0) 20 7138 3204


 




 
 
About Condor Gold plc:
 
Condor Gold plc was admitted to AIM in May 2006 and dual listed on the TSX in January 2018. The Company is a gold exploration and development company with a focus on Nicaragua. 
 
In August 2018, the Company announced that the Ministry of the Environment in Nicaragua had granted the Company an Environmental Permit for the development, construction and operation of a processing plant with capacity to process up to 2,800 tonnes per day at its wholly-owned La India gold project ("La India Project"). The Environmental Permit is considered to be the master permit for mining operations in Nicaragua. Condor Gold published a Pre-Feasibility Study ("PFS") on the La India Project in December 2014, as summarised in the Technical Report as defined below. The PFS details an open pit gold Mineral Reserve in the Probable category of 6.9 Mt at 3.0 g/t gold for 675,000 oz gold, producing 80,000 oz gold per annum for seven years. La India Project contains a Mineral Resource of 9,850Kt at 3.6 g/t gold for 1,140Koz gold in the Indicated category and 8,479Kt at 4.3g/t gold for 1,179Koz gold in the Inferred category. The Indicated Mineral Resource is inclusive of the Mineral Reserve. A gold price of $1,500/oz and a cut-off grade of 0.5g/t and 2.0g/t gold were assumed for open pit and underground resources respectively. A cut-off grade of 1.5g/t gold was furthermore applied within a part of the Inferred Resource. Mineral Resources are not Mineral Reserves and do not have demonstrated economic viability. There is no certainty that any part of the Mineral Resources will be converted to Mineral Reserves.  
 
Environmental Permits have also been granted in April and May 2020 in relation to the Mestiza and America open pits respectively, both located in the vicinity of the La India Project. The Mestiza open pit hosts 92Kt at a grade of 12.1 g/t gold (36,000 oz contained gold) in the Indicated Mineral Resource category and 341 Kt at a grade of 7.7 g/t gold (85,000 oz contained gold) in the Inferred Mineral Resource category. The America open pit hosts 114 Kt at a grade of 8.1 g/t gold (30,000 oz contained gold) in the Indicated Mineral Resource category and 677Kt at a grade of 3.1 g/t gold (67,000 oz contained gold) in the Inferred Mineral Resource category. Following the permitting of the Mestiza and America open pits, together with the La India open pit Condor has 1.12M oz gold open pit Mineral Resources permitted for extraction, inclusive of a Mineral Reserve of 6.9Mt at 3.0g/t gold for 675,000 oz gold.
 
 
Disclaimer
 
Neither the contents of the Company's website nor the contents of any website accessible from hyperlinks on the Company's website (or any other website) is incorporated into, or forms part of, this announcement.
 
 
Qualified Persons
 
The technical and scientific information in this press release has been reviewed, verified and approved by Andrew Cheatle, P.Geo., who is a "qualified person" as defined by NI 43-101.
 
Technical Information
Certain disclosure contained in this news release of a scientific or technical nature has been summarised or extracted from the technical report entitled "Technical Report on the La India Gold Project, Nicaragua, December 2014", dated November 13, 2017 with an effective date of December 21, 2014 (the "Technical Report"), prepared in accordance with NI 43-101. The Technical Report was prepared by or under the supervision of Tim Lucks, Principal Consultant (Geology & Project Management), Gabor Bacsfalusi, Principal Consultant (Mining), Benjamin Parsons, Principal Consultant (Resource Geology), each of SRK Consulting (UK) Limited, and Neil Lincoln of Lycopodium Minerals Canada Ltd., each of whom is an independent "qualified person" as defined by NI 43-101.
 
Forward Looking Statements
All statements in this press release, other than statements of historical fact, are 'forward-looking information' with respect to the Company within the meaning of applicable securities laws, including statements with respect to: the future development and production plans at La India Project. Forward-looking information is often, but not always, identified by the use of words such as: "seek", "anticipate", "plan", "continue", "strategies", "estimate", "expect", "project", "predict", "potential", "targeting", "intends", "believe", "potential", "could", "might", "will" and similar expressions. Forward-looking information is not a guarantee of future performance and is based upon a number of estimates and assumptions of management at the date the statements are made including, among others, assumptions regarding: future commodity prices and royalty regimes; availability of skilled labour; timing and amount of capital expenditures; future currency exchange and interest rates; the impact of increasing competition; general conditions in economic and financial markets; availability of drilling and related equipment; effects of regulation by governmental agencies; the receipt of required permits; royalty rates; future tax rates; future operating costs; availability of future sources of funding; ability to obtain financing and assumptions underlying estimates related to adjusted funds from operations. Many assumptions are based on factors and events that are not within the control of the Company and there is no assurance they will prove to be correct. 
 
Such forward-looking information involves known and unknown risks, which may cause the actual results to be materially different from any future results expressed or implied by such forward-looking information, including, risks related to: mineral exploration, development and operating risks; estimation of mineralisation, resources and reserves; environmental, health and safety regulations of the resource industry; competitive conditions; operational risks; liquidity and financing risks; funding risk; exploration costs; uninsurable risks; conflicts of interest; risks of operating in Nicaragua; government policy changes; ownership risks; permitting and licencing risks; artisanal miners and community relations; difficulty in enforcement of judgments; market conditions; stress in the global economy; current global financial condition; exchange rate and currency risks; commodity prices; reliance on key personnel; dilution risk; payment of dividends; as well as those factors discussed under the heading "Risk Factors" in the Company's annual information form for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2019 dated March 31, 2020, available under the Company's SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com.
 
Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that such information will prove to be accurate as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise unless required by law.
 
 
Jim Mellon 




1


Details of the  person  discharging  managerial  responsibilities  /  person  closely associated




a)


Name


Jim Mellon 
 




2


Reason for notification




a)


Position / status


Non-Executive Director




b)


Initial notification
/Amendment


Initial 




3


Details of the issuer,  emission allowance market participant, auction platform, auctioneer or auction monitor




a)


Name


Condor Gold plc
 




b) 


LEI


213800PFKETQA86RHL82
 




4


Details of the transaction(s): section to be repeated for (i) each type of instrument; (ii) each type of transaction; (iii) each date; and (iv) each place where transactions have been conducted




a)


Description of the financial instrument, type of instrument
 
Identification code


4,761,905 Ordinary shares of 20 pence each in Condor Gold plc
 
 
ISIN GB00B8225591
 
 




 


Nature of the transaction


Director's participation in a Subscription
 




c)


Price(s) and volumes(s)


 




Price(s)


Volumes(s)




42 pence


4,761,905




 
 




d)


Aggregated information


n/a




e)


Date of the transaction


15 February 2021




f)


Place of the transaction


London Stock Exchange, AIM (XLON)




 
Andrew Cheatle




1


Details of the  person  discharging  managerial  responsibilities  /  person  closely associated




a)


Name


Andrew Cheatle
 




2


Reason for notification




a)


Position / status


Non-Executive Director




b)


Initial notification
/Amendment


Initial 




3


Details of the issuer,  emission allowance market participant, auction platform, auctioneer or auction monitor




a)


Name


Condor Gold plc
 




b) 


LEI


213800PFKETQA86RHL82
 




4


Details of the transaction(s): section to be repeated for (i) each type of instrument; (ii) each type of transaction; (iii) each date; and (iv) each place where transactions have been conducted




a)


Description of the financial instrument, type of instrument
 
Identification code


11,905 Ordinary shares of 20 pence each in Condor Gold plc
 
 
ISIN GB00B8225591
 
 




 


Nature of the transaction


Director's participation in a Subscription
 




c)


Price(s) and volumes(s)


 




Price(s)


Volumes(s)




42 pence


11,905




 
 




d)


Aggregated information


n/a




e)


Date of the transaction


15 February 2021




f)


Place of the transaction


London Stock Exchange, AIM (XLON)




 
Mark Child




1


Details of the  person  discharging  managerial  responsibilities  /  person  closely associated




a)


Name


Mark Child 
 




2


Reason for notification




a)


Position / status


Executive Chairman




b)


Initial notification
/Amendment


Initial 




3


Details of the issuer,  emission allowance market participant, auction platform, auctioneer or auction monitor




a)


Name


Condor Gold plc
 




b) 


LEI


213800PFKETQA86RHL82
 




4


Details of the transaction(s): section to be repeated for (i) each type of instrument; (ii) each type of transaction; (iii) each date; and (iv) each place where transactions have been conducted




a)


Description of the financial instrument, type of instrument
 
Identification code


14,270 Ordinary shares of 20 pence each in Condor Gold plc
 
 
ISIN GB00B8225591
 
 




 


Nature of the transaction


Director's participation in a Subscription
 




c)


Price(s) and volumes(s)


 




Price(s)


Volumes(s)




42 pence


14,270




 
 




d)


Aggregated information


n/a




e)


Date of the transaction


15 February 2021




f)


Place of the transaction


London Stock Exchange, AIM (XLON)




 


 


 




 
Jeffrey Karoly




1


Details of the  person  discharging  managerial  responsibilities  /  person  closely associated




a)


Name


Jeffrey Karoly 
 




2


Reason for notification




a)


Position / status


Chief Financial Officer




b)


Initial notification
/Amendment


Initial 




3


Details of the issuer,  emission allowance market participant, auction platform, auctioneer or auction monitor




a)


Name


Condor Gold plc
 




b) 


LEI


213800PFKETQA86RHL82
 




4


Details of the transaction(s): section to be repeated for (i) each type of instrument; (ii) each type of transaction; (iii) each date; and (iv) each place where transactions have been conducted




a)


Description of the financial instrument, type of instrument
 
Identification code


11,905 Ordinary shares of 20 pence each in Condor Gold plc
 
 
ISIN GB00B8225591
 
 




 


Nature of the transaction


Participation in a Subscription
 




c)


Price(s) and volumes(s)


 




Price(s)


Volumes(s)




42 pence


11,905




 
 




d)


Aggregated information


n/a




e)


Date of the transaction


15 February 2021




f)


Place of the transaction


London Stock Exchange, AIM (XLON)




Ian Stalker




1


Details of the  person  discharging  managerial  responsibilities  /  person  closely associated




a)


Name


Ian Stalker 
 




2


Reason for notification




a)


Position / status


Non-Executive Director




b)


Initial notification
/Amendment


Initial 




3


Details of the issuer,  emission allowance market participant, auction platform, auctioneer or auction monitor




a)


Name


Condor Gold plc
 




b) 


LEI


213800PFKETQA86RHL82
 




4


Details of the transaction(s): section to be repeated for (i) each type of instrument; (ii) each type of transaction; (iii) each date; and (iv) each place where transactions have been conducted




a)


Description of the financial instrument, type of instrument
 
Identification code


71,429 Ordinary shares of 20 pence each in Condor Gold plc
 
 
ISIN GB00B8225591
 
 




 


Nature of the transaction


Participation in a Subscription
 




c)


Price(s) and volumes(s)


 




Price(s)


Volumes(s)




42 pence


71,429




 
 




d)


Aggregated information


n/a




e)


Date of the transaction


15 February 2021




f)


Place of the transaction


London Stock Exchange, AIM (XLON)




 

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