REG - First Class Metals - Strategic Funding & Winter Work Programme

FIRST CLASS METALSAnnouncement

23/12/2024 07:00

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RNS Number : 0100R  First Class Metals PLC  23 December 2024

The information contained within this announcement is deemed to constitute
inside information as stipulated under the retained EU law version of the
Market Abuse Regulation (EU) No. 596/2014 (the "UK MAR") which is part of UK
law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018. The information is
disclosed in accordance with the Company's obligations under Article 17 of the
UK MAR. Upon the publication of this announcement, this inside information is
now considered to be in the public domain.

FIRST CLASS METALS PLC

23 December 2024

The 79th GRP Limited Strategic Funding & Winter Work Programme

First Class Metals PLC ("First Class Metals," "FCM," or the "Company"), (LSE:
FCM, FWB: WN9), the Ontario focused gold and critical metals explorer is
pleased to announce that The 79th GRP Limited ("79th GRP") has increased its
existing loan to the Company ("Loan") by £200,000, bringing the total Loan to
£700,000. This follows the previously announced conditional strategic equity
funding by 79th GRP of approximately £2.18 million ("Conditional Equity
Funding"). The additional funding underlines 79th GRP's commitment to
advancing the proposed Conditional Equity Funding process and supporting the
Company's strategic objectives as the partnership progresses.

Key Highlights:

·    Existing Loan with 79(th) GRP increased from £500,000 to £700,000:
This additional funding comes as a further demonstration of 79th GRP's
commitment to supporting FCM's strategic goals with the planned Winter
Exploration Plans for North Hemlo & Sunbeam now fully funded.

·    Funding to advance North Hemlo & Sunbeam properties, including:

o  Very Low Frequency (VLF) geophysical survey across priority targets at
North Hemlo

o  Lake sediment sampling programme to identify additional targets at North
Hemlo

o  Wide scale lake sediment sampling across 'newly' staked claims at Sunbeam
to identify new targets

Loan Facility Update:

The new loan agreement increases the total facility from £500,000 to
£700,000, to be drawn in a single tranche. Key terms of the loan include:

I.      Repayment Date: The Loan is repayable on the earlier of 25 April
2025 and completion of the first stage of the Conditional Equity Funding or,
if such should not occur, the day after the relevant general meeting.

II.     Interest Only: Interest is payable at a 15% annual rate throughout
the term.

III.    Secured Facility: The Loan is secured by a debenture over the
assets of First Class Metals PLC.

IV.    Equity Conversion: The Loan together with accrued but unpaid
interest and fees will be capitalised into ordinary shares of the Company at a
price of 1.7p per share upon completion of the first stage of the Conditional
Equity Funding, as detailed in the announcement dated 18 December 2024.

For more details on the original loan facility, please refer to the
announcements dated 13 June 2024 and 8 October 2024.

James Knowles, Executive Chairman, commented:

"This additional £200,000 loan from the 79th GRP underscores their continued
confidence in our assets and strategy, as well as their commitment to the
previously announced £2.18 million conditional equity investment. Their
financial support strengthens our ability to execute fully funded Winter
Exploration Plans for North Hemlo and Sunbeam, enabling us to maintain
momentum across our portfolio.

This latest funding highlights the alignment between FCM and the 79th Group as
we work collaboratively towards completing the conditional investment process.
We are excited about the opportunities this partnership presents to drive
forward the development of our northern Ontario projects and deliver
significant value for our shareholders."

Marc Sale, Chief Executive Officer, commented:

"I am excited that we can initiate a funded Winter Work Programme which will
ensure that, when the spring field season starts, we can maximise the efforts
on the two main properties. The Winter Work Programme in conjunction with the
stripping and the results from the recently completed soil sampling programmes
at North Hemlo and Sunbeam will provide focus in the coming months, the
intention being to drill one or both properties."

Dave Webster, Chairman, The 79th GRP Limited, commented:

"The Seventy Ninth Group is deeply committed to investing heavily in the
development of FCM's assets, aligning with its strategic focus on generating
significant value across the portfolio for shareholders. This proactive
investment approach underscores the Group's dedication to driving sustainable
growth and maximising value through disciplined and strategic asset
management."

Looking Forward

Following the recent announcement of the conditional subscription agreement
with 79th GRP, First Class Metals PLC is pleased to highlight the
strengthening of its financial position through the increased loan facility
provided by 79th GRP. This additional funding, bringing the Loan to £700,000,
ensures that key exploration initiatives, including the funded Winter Work
Programme for North Hemlo and Sunbeam, can progress as planned.

The increased loan commitment further demonstrates 79th GRP's confidence in
FCM's strategy and the potential of our northern Ontario assets. This
strategic financial support not only enables us to advance our current
exploration programmes but also underscores the growing alignment between the
two companies as we work together to create long-term value.

The Board is fully committed to capitalising on these developments and
leveraging the opportunities that this strengthened partnership presents. With
the support of 79th GRP, we are well-positioned to achieve our objectives and
deliver meaningful progress across our portfolio.

We look forward to providing further updates as we continue to advance our
projects and deliver value to shareholders.

.

Ends

For Further Information:

Engage with us by asking questions, watching video summaries, and seeing what
other shareholders have to say. Navigate to our Interactive Investor hub here:

www.firstclassmetalsplc.com (http://www.firstclassmetalsplc.com)

For further information, please contact:

James Knowles, Executive Chair

Email: JamesK@Firstclassmetalsplc.com (mailto:JamesK@Firstclassmetalsplc.com)

Tel: 07488 362641

Marc J Sale, CEO

Email: MarcS@Firstclassmetalsplc.com (mailto:MarcS@Firstclassmetalsplc.com)

Tel: 07711 093532

Novum Securities Limited (Financial Adviser)

David Coffman / George Duxberry

Website: www.novumsecurities.com (http://www.novumsecurities.com)

Tel: (0)20 7399 9400

Axis Capital Markets (Broker)

Lewis Jones / Ben Tadd

Website: Axcap247.com (http://www.axcap247.com)

Tel: (0)203 026 0449

NOTES TO EDITORS

Qualified Person

The technical disclosures contained in this announcement have been drafted in
line with the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum standards
and guidelines and approved by Marc J. Sale, who has more than 30 years in the
gold exploration industry and is considered a Qualified person owing to his
status as a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy.

First Class Metals PLC - Background

First Class Metals listed on the LSE in July 2022 and is focused on metals
exploration in Ontario, Canada which has a robust and thriving junior mineral
exploration sector. In particular, the Hemlo 'camp' near Marathon, Ontario is
a proven world class address for gold exploration, featuring the Hemlo gold
deposit operated by Barrick Gold (>23M oz gold produced), with the past
producing Geco and Winston Lake base metal deposits also situated in the
region.

FCM currently holds 100% ownership of seven claim blocks covering over 180km²
along a 150km strike of the Hemlo-Schreiber-Dayohessarah greenstone belt,
exploring for gold, base metals, and rare earth element mineralization. In
addition, FCM is carrying out a joint venture with Palladium One on the West
Pickle Lake Property in the region, a drill-proven ultra-high-grade Ni-Cu
project.

The flagship property North Hemlo had a high-definition low level magnetic
Heli-borne survey flown in April 2022, this was followed with ground
prospecting which ultimately defined the 'Dead Otter Trend' which is a
discontinuous 4.5km gold anomalous trend with a 19.6g/t Au peak grab sample.
This sampling being the highest known assay ever recorded on the North Limb of
Hemlo.

In October 2022 FCM completed the option to purchase the historical high-grade
past-producing Sunbeam gold mine near Atikokan, Ontario, ~15 km southeast of
Agnico Eagle's Hammond Reef gold deposit (3.3 Moz of open pit probable gold
reserves).

FCM acquired the Zigzag Project near Armstrong, Ontario in March 2023. The
property features Li-Ta-bearing pegmatites in the same belt as Green
Technology Metals' Seymour Lake Project, which contains a Mineral Resource
estimate of 9.9 Mt @ 1.04% Li2O. Zigzag was drilled prior to Christmas 2023
and results have now been released.

The significant potential of the properties for precious, base and battery
metals relates to 'nearology', since all properties lie in the same districts
as known deposits (Hemlo, Hammond Reef, Seymour Lake), and either contain
known showings, geochemical or geophysical anomalies, or favourable structures
along strike from known showings (e.g. the Esa project, with an inferred
Hemlo-style shear along strike from known gold occurrences).

Forward Looking Statements

Certain statements in this announcement may contain forward-looking statements
which are based on the Company's expectations, intentions and projections
regarding its future performance, anticipated events or trends and other
matters that are not historical facts. Such forward-looking statements can be
identified by the fact that they do not relate only to historical or current
facts. Forward-looking statements sometimes use words such as 'aim',
'anticipate', 'target', 'expect', 'estimate', 'intend', 'plan', 'goal',
'believe', or other words of similar meaning. These statements are not
guarantees of future performance and are subject to known and unknown risks,
uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ
materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements.
Given these risks and uncertainties, prospective investors are cautioned not
to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Forward-looking
statements speak only as of the date of such statements and, except as
required by applicable law, the Company undertakes no obligation to update or
revise publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new
information, future events or otherwise.

 

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