REG - Critical Metals PLC - Operational and Financing Update

Critical MetalsAnnouncement

11/11/2024 08:00

For best results when printing this announcement, please click on link below:
https://newsfile.refinitiv.com/getnewsfile/v1/story?guid=urn:newsml:reuters.com:20241111:nRSK6761La&default-theme=true

RNS Number : 6761L  Critical Metals PLC  11 November 2024

Critical Metals plc / EPIC: CRTM / Market: Main Market

 

 

11 November 2024

Critical Metals plc

("Critical Metals" or the "Company")

 

Operational and Financing Update

 

Critical Metals plc, developer and operator of the Molulu Copper/Cobalt
Project ("Molulu" or the "Project") in the Democratic Republic of Congo
("DRC"), provides the following update with regards to the investments and
loans made to the Company along with an operational update.

 

Operational Update and Delivery of Ore

 

After taking several samples from the various ore stockpiles, OM Metals SARL,
the current copper ore off-taker, has sent its first ore haulage truck to load
ore from the Company's stockpile for purchase and processing at the OM Metals
plant. Approximately 40-tonnes of copper ore was loaded onto the truck and has
arrived at the OM Metals plant for crushing, assaying, analysis, and
processing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Figure 1 - Truck arriving at OM Metals scale to weigh Molulu copper ore

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Figure 2 - Delivery and discharge of Molulu copper ore at OM Metals plant

 

Additional trucks from OM Metals will follow once sampling and assaying are
completed this week. Payment for this ore should happen within two weeks after
invoicing OM Metals.

 

In addition, geotechnical and geological activities at Molulu are resuming as
the geologist team has returned from leave. There are several areas identified
for continued geotechnical activities in the Southern zone and an area where
the Conglomerate outcrops with traces of copper malachite in the Northern
zone. These geotechnical activities will provide further data points for
consideration when designing the new diamond drill programme.

 

Preliminary discussions are ongoing with various agencies to plan a
feasibility study for the potential installation of a 2 MW solar power unit at
Molulu. This power unit is designed to reduce costs at the camp and to supply
enough power to operate a potential future copper concentrator plant and
surrounding area, including the E.P. Molulu school.  The installation of any
solar power unit would be subject to the Company obtaining additional funding
or grants.

 

Financing

On 18(th) September 2023, the Company announced that it had signed a facility
(the "Facility") with an international financial institution ("Lender"),
enabling it to drawdown in tranches, up to a maximum of US$3 million of loan
funds. To date, the Company has borrowed a total of US$650,000 from the
Facility. On 10 April 2024, the Company previously announced that US$100,000
was repaid from the proceeds of the convertible loan notes issued on that
date.  The Company also announced that same day that US$79,500 of interest
and fees from the Facility were applied towards the subscription price for
convertible loan notes issued by the Company.  Of the remaining balance under
the Facility, US$511,525 was due to be repaid in June 2024 in interest and
principal and the remaining sum being due in three instalments before 20
September 2024.

 

The Company and Lender had agreed to extend the time for repayment until 30
September 2024 in anticipation of the closing of a financing that would have
fully repaid the Facility. In consideration, the Company extended the period
for the exercise of the 2,000,000 warrants granted to the Lender at the time
the Facility was entered into until 15 September 2025.  The 30 September 2024
deadline for the extension has not been met due to continuing due diligence
related to the financing.

 

On 10 November 2024, the Company reached an agreement with the Lender to
reschedule its payments under its current Facility. The Lender has now agreed
to defer payments totalling US$645,651 (including accrued interest) until 20
December 2024. The Company has a right to gain a further extension until 31
January 2025 through the payment of $75,000 towards the outstanding principal
before 20 December 2024.  The Lender's consent to a standstill is subject to
customary conditions including but limited to no insolvency type events
occurring, the Company's shares remaining trading and the Company complying
with various warranties and obligations (including authority and capacity
warranties, information undertakings in favour of the Lender and compliance
with a prohibition on certain third-party security).

 

For avoidance of doubt, the Company has not received any default notice from
the Lender regarding the Facility. In addition, the Lender is aware the
Company is actively engaged in advanced discussions about refinancing.

 

Finally, the Company has implemented cost-saving measures to preserve cash,
including voluntary salary deferral reductions of 25% at the executive level
and strategic reductions in workforce to align with current conditions. The
recruitment of additional staff and the engagement of essential consultants
for comprehensive hydrological, geohydrological, topographical, and JORC
reports will be re-looked at when financing is available.

 

Further updates will be provided as and when appropriate.

 

**ENDS**

 

For further information on the Company please
visit www.criticalmetals.co.uk or contact: 

 

 Critical Metals plc

 CEO

 Russell Fryer                  critical@stbridespartners.co.uk

 Fox-Davies Capital Limited

 Corporate Broker

 Daniel Fox-Davies              Tel: +44 (0)20 3884 8450

 St Brides Partners Ltd

 Financial PR

 Ana Ribeiro / Charlotte Page   critical@stbridespartners.co.uk

 

 

About Critical Metals

London listed Critical Metals plc is focused on identifying low CAPEX and OPEX
brown-field projects with near-term production and cash-flow, concentrating on
minerals that have strategic importance to future global economic growth.  In
line with this, and with an off-take partner already in place, the Company is
currently focused on recommencing production at the formerly producing Molulu
Copper/Cobalt Project in the Katangan Copperbelt in Democratic Republic of
Congo ('DRC').

 

 

This information is provided by RNS, the news service of the London Stock Exchange. RNS is approved by the Financial Conduct Authority to act as a Primary Information Provider in the United Kingdom. Terms and conditions relating to the use and distribution of this information may apply. For further information, please contact
rns@lseg.com (mailto:rns@lseg.com)
 or visit
www.rns.com (http://www.rns.com/)
.

RNS may use your IP address to confirm compliance with the terms and conditions, to analyse how you engage with the information contained in this communication, and to share such analysis on an anonymised basis with others as part of our commercial services. For further information about how RNS and the London Stock Exchange use the personal data you provide us, please see our
Privacy Policy (https://www.lseg.com/privacy-and-cookie-policy)
.   END  UPDURRORSSUAAUA