REG - Oriole Resources PLC - Corporate Update

Oriole ResourcesAnnouncement

02/01/2024 07:00

For best results when printing this announcement, please click on link below:
http://newsfile.refinitiv.com/getnewsfile/v1/story?guid=urn:newsml:reuters.com:20240102:nRSB2734Ya&default-theme=true

RNS Number : 2734Y  Oriole Resources PLC  02 January 2024

Oriole Resources PLC

('Oriole Resources' or 'the Company' or 'the Group')

 

Corporate Update

 

Oriole Resources (AIM: ORR), the AIM-quoted gold exploration company focussed
on West Africa, is pleased to provide an update on its activities and
investments, including the Bibemi ('Bibemi') and Mbe ('Mbe') gold projects in
Cameroon (together the 'Projects').

 

 

Highlights

 

·    Execution of the Bibemi and Mbe Earn-In Agreements is anticipated
during January 2024. BCM International Limited ('BCM') will earn up to a 50%
interest in both Bibemi and Mbe in return for meeting certain commitments,
including payment of the outstanding Signature Payments (US$450,000 for Bibemi
and US$1 million for Mbe), funding US$4 million in exploration expenditure at
each of the Projects plus future resource-linked success-based payments;

·    At Bibemi, expenditure against the US$4 million funding on Bibemi has
already commenced, with approximately US$72,000 received to support camp
upgrades and ongoing technical studies in support of the application for an
exploitation licence in 2024;

·    The Mbe Earn-In Agreement is conditional on the successful conclusion
of BCM's due-diligence review. BCM has recently completed a three week-long
site visit and collected 639 samples which are now being prepared for
analysis. Results are anticipated in late January;

·    Due to the Mbe Earn-In Agreement, the proposed financing previously
announced on 11 April 2023 with the Canadian Investment Bank is currently on
hold pending completion of the Mbe Earn-In Agreement;

·    During December 2023, a renewal application was submitted for the
Senala gold project ('Senala') in Senegal. Managem has confirmed that it will
not be completing any further work at Senala under the existing option
agreement, which expires on 17 February 2024. The Company is currently
considering the future of the partnership post completion of the option
agreement;

·    Approval for a two-year licence extension is still awaited at
Wapouzé, where the Company requested a change in commodity focus from gold to
limestone on the basis of geological and geochemical data (Announcement 27
September 2023). Once the renewal is granted, the Company will look to secure
an industrial mineral partner to progress the asset.

 

Photo 1: Samples collected during the BCM due-diligence review at Mbe

 

Oriole Resources CEO, Tim Livesey, said: "When I first introduced the concept
of exploration in Cameroon to the Oriole team in 2018, they were quick to
recognise the potential and to support the strategy of developing our focus on
this new frontier for gold exploration.

"Since 2018, the team's diligent work has now paid off, with successive
exploration gains at Bibemi and throughout our Central Licence Package.

"With our efforts to attract a project-level partner for two of our properties
nearing completion, we hope to see rapid and successful progress in 2024, with
the expansion and enhancement of the Resource at Bibemi, and advancement of
the definition of a new gold district within the Central Licence Package,
starting with the Mbe project.

"Of course, our focus has not dropped on progressing other opportunities that
may add value to the Company and, as such, we continue to progress the
Wapouzé licence to a stage of potential farm out as a source of industrial
minerals for the cement industry in the Region.

"At Senala in Senegal, Managem is considering its next steps as it reaches the
end of the second option period, after which its equity position will be
confirmed and the possibility of project advancement together as partners, or
sale of the asset, can be considered.

"In Turkey, our legacy royalty asset, Muratdere, continues to advance through
the permitting stage, moving ever closer to a realisation of value.  On
several other fronts in Turkey, we continue to seek value from our debtors
through ongoing court proceedings.

"In short, 2023 was a year of growth-building for Oriole, with significant new
partnerships already starting to deliver value in our key projects in Senegal
and Cameroon.

"Whilst we prepare to welcome BCM officially as our new partner, we still
retain control of significant landholdings in Cameroon, a new frontier for
gold exploration, and have several additional routes to value that we are
working hard to unlock for our shareholders."

 

 

Further Details

 

During 2023, the Board focused its efforts on bringing-in project level
funding to progress its assets and on 20 November 2023, the Company signed two
Heads of Terms with BCM, a well-respected mining and civil contractor, related
to earn-ins by BCM on the Company's Bibemi (92.8%-owned) and Mbe (90%-owned)
gold projects, respectively.

 

The Company today reports that drafting of the definitive Bibemi and Mbe
Earn-In Agreements is progressing well and it is now anticipated that they
will be finalised during January 2024. Execution of these Earn-In Agreements
will secure up to US$4 million in exploration expenditure for each Project in
addition to Signature Payments and JORC resource linked success-based payments
(Announcement 20 November 2023).

 

At the Bibemi project in northern Cameroon, under the terms of the draft
Bibemi Earn-In Agreement, BCM will pay Oriole US$450,000 (being the US$500,000
Signature Payment less the US$50,000 deposit already paid). Expenditure
against the US$4m funding has already commenced, with approximately US$72,000
already received to support camp upgrades and ongoing technical studies in
support of the application for an exploitation licence in 2024. It is
anticipated that drilling will resume at Bibemi in Q1-2024, with a strong
focus on expanding the resource inventory at the Bakassi Zone 1 prospect,
where the Company has already announced a maiden Mineral Resource Estimate of
305,000 ounces ('oz') grading 2.19 grammes per tonne ('g/t') gold ('Au') in
the JORC Inferred category, within the limit of a US$1,800/oz gold price pit
shell, and an additional JORC Exploration Target of between 1.5 and 2.2
million tonnes at grades ranging from 1.10 to 2.10 g/t for between 53,000 and
148,000 oz of Au (announcement dated 12 December 2022). Further details on the
planned drilling programme will be announced in due course, subject to
execution of the Bibemi Earn-In Agreement.

 

At Mbe, a 312km(2) licence located within the broader 2,266km(2) Eastern CLP
package of contiguous gold-focussed licences in central Cameroon ('Eastern
CLP' or the 'Licence Package'), the Company has identified a 3km-long zone of
high-grade gold mineralisation with results of up to 134.10 g/t Au from
surface samples and artisanal workings (announcements dated 30 January 2023,
27 February 2023 and 21 June 2023).

 

Receipt of the US$1 million Signature Payment, and the Mbe Earn-In Agreement,
is conditional on the successful outcome of a due diligence review by BCM,
ending no later than 31 January 2024. To date, BCM has completed (at its cost)
a three-week long site visit to Mbe and has collected 639 samples weighing 2-5
kilograms each over the 3km-long zone. These samples will now be sent for
analysis (together with 68 QAQC samples, for a total 707 samples) at the
Intertek laboratory in Ghana, predominantly for Fire Assay analysis but also
for some preliminary metallurgical testwork (bottle-roll leach test) to
ascertain the recoverability of the gold. Results are expected in
late-January.

 

 

Photo 2 (Left): BCM's geological consultant, Dr Bob Griffis, and Oriole's
Exploration Manager for Cameroon, Abdoul Mbodji, discussing the geology of the
Mbe gold system

Photo 3 (Right): Sample collection during the BCM due-diligence review at Mbe

Meanwhile, the Board continues to advance exploration, and in parallel seek
project-level investment partners, on the remaining four licences in the
Eastern CLP. The proposed financing previously announced on 11 April 2023 with
the Canadian Investment Bank will look to be restructured. It continues to
show an interest in the Licence package and is considering its position
accordingly. A further update will be provided on this in due course. The
Company also continues to engage with parties interested in the lithium
anomalism previously identified within the Ndom licence (also part of the
Eastern CLP) and the adjacent Gamboukou licence.

 

At the Wapouzé project, located 20km north of Bibemi, the Company submitted a
formal request earlier this year for a change of permitted substance from gold
to industrial minerals (Announcement dated 27 September 2023). This, and a
renewal of the licence for a further two-year period, is awaited. Once
received, the Company will look to secure an industrial minerals partner to
develop the Wapouzé project through to exploitation on an expedited basis.
Oriole is ultimately looking to achieve a royalty-based payment, likely based
on the volume of material extracted, which would provide in-country revenue
that can be redirected towards its gold and lithium-based exploration work at
Bibemi and the Eastern CLP licences.

 

At Senala, a renewal application has been submitted for a further three-year
term. Having originally intended to complete a 2,000m drilling programme at
the Faré prospect during Q4-2023, Managem has confirmed that it will not be
completing any further work at Senala under the existing Option Agreement,
which expires on 17 February 2024. Accordingly, and subject to a final review
of the accounts at that time, it is likely that Managem's resultant interest
in the project will be approximately 60% (based on expenditure to date) under
the option agreement. Managem retains the right to take its interest to the
maximum of 70% under the option agreement by making a cash payment to Oriole
directly which is equivalent to any shortfall in exploration expenditure
(currently estimated to be US$2.3 million. The Company is considering its next
steps, post completion of the option agreement, which includes, but is not
limited to, a joint-venture partnership with Managem or a sale of its interest
in Senala.

 

In Turkey, the Company's former Muratdere project, in which it still holds a
1.2% net smelter returns royalty, continues to advance through the permitting
stage. The Board also continues to seek value from its other legacy assets,
where ongoing court proceedings are continuing to make progress against third
party debtors.

 

Competent Persons Statement

The information in this release that relates to Exploration Results has been
compiled by Claire Bay (Executive Director, Exploration and Business
Development). Claire Bay (MGeol, CGeol) is a Competent Person as defined in
the JORC code and takes responsibility for the release of this information.
Claire has reviewed the information in this announcement and confirms that she
is not aware of any new information or data that materially affects the
information reproduced here, and that the material assumptions and technical
parameters that underpin the Bibemi Mineral Resource Estimate continue to
apply.

 

 

** ENDS **

 

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.

 

For further information please visit www.orioleresources.com
(http://www.orioleresources.com) , @OrioleResources on Twitter, or contact:

 

 Oriole Resources Plc                    Tel: +44 (0)23 8065 1649
 Tim Livesey / Bob Smeeton / Claire Bay

 BlytheRay (IR/PR Contact)               Tel: +44 (0)20 7138 3204
 Tim Blythe / Megan Ray

 Grant Thornton UK LLP                   Tel: +44 (0)20 7383 5100
 Samantha Harrison / Ciara Donnelly
 SP Angel Corporate Finance LLP          Tel: +44 (0)20 3470 0470

 Ewan Leggat / Harry Davies-Ball

 

Notes to Editors:

 

Oriole Resources PLC is an AIM-listed gold exploration company, operating
in West Africa. It is focussed on early-stage exploration
in Cameroon, where the Company has a maiden Resource of 305,000 oz Au at
2.19g/t in the JORC Inferred category at the Bibemi project and has identified
multi-kilometre gold and lithium anomalism within the district-scale Central
Licence Package project. The Company is currently working towards the
completion of two earn-in agreements with BCM International Limited ('BCM')
to fast track the Bibemi project and the Mbe project (part of the CLP), with
BCM committing to signature payments, US$4 million exploration spend and
resource-based success payments at each project in return for up to 50%
ownership.

 

At the more advanced Senala gold project in Senegal, AGEM Senegal
Exploration Suarl ('AGEM'), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Managem Group, has
earned an initial 51% beneficial interest in the Senala Exploration Licence by
spending US$4 million and has the option to spend up to a further US$4
million by 17 February 2024 to earn an additional 19% interest in the
licence. The Company also has several interests and royalties in companies
operating in East Africa and Turkey that could deliver future cash flow.

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  UPDDGGDBBUGDGSB