REG - Rome Resources PLC - Next Drilling Phase & 2025 Progress review

Rome ResourcesAnnouncement

23/12/2025 07:00

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RNS Number : 5385M  Rome Resources PLC  23 December 2025

23 December 2025

 

Rome Resources plc

("Rome Resources", the "Company")

 

Start of next drilling phase targeting deep zone intercepts

and operational progress review of 2025

 

Rome Resources plc (AIM: RMR), the DRC-focused tin and copper explorer, is
pleased to announce the commencement of the next phase of drilling operations
at its Bisie North project in the Democratic Republic of Congo ("DRC"),
located just 8 km from the world-class Alphamin Mpama tin mine complex,
together with an operational progress review of 2025.

 

Forward Drilling Programme

Following a successful fundraise in November 2025, the Company is now
launching a focused drilling campaign at Bisie North. This campaign is aimed
at testing deeper mineralisation beneath areas defined by the announced maiden
Mineral Resource Estimate ("MRE").  The helicopter, drilling crew and
required equipment is now on-site, with initial drilling underway at the Mont
Agoma prospect using two drill rigs. This is expected to be followed by the
drill rigs moving the short distance to the Kalayi prospect.

 

Key elements of the forward drilling campaign include:

·    Targeting a number of key exploration targets, with an aggregate
in-house estimate of between 53 and 144 kt of potential contained tin across
both prospects.

 

·    At Mont Agoma, drilling will target two main areas:

o  Extending the strike of the Mont Agoma East zone; and

o  Testing grades in the deeper Mont Agoma Western zone, where strong copper
grades are anticipated to give way to higher tin grades at depth.

 

·    At Kalayi, drilling will target extensions beneath existing high
grade tin intercepts with the expectation, consistent with Alphamin's Bisie
Mpama Mine results, that the thinner high-grade intercepts may widen at depth
while retaining a high grade.

 

·    A total of approximately 2,000 metres of drilling is planned across 6
to 8 holes, with the programme anticipated to complete towards the end of the
first quarter of 2026.

 

·    Following the receipt of core assays, the Company intends to update
the MRE to incorporate additional intercepts from this drilling campaign.

 

Exploratory discussions continue with a number of parties active in the region
to assess potential strategic pathways for value creation following the
proposed publication of an updated MRE.

 

2025 Operational Review

Following the Company's admission to trading on AIM in July 2024 and the
strategic investment by Stanvic Mining, Rome Resources completed a diamond
drilling campaign across the Bisie North Project.  A total of 5,143 metres of
drill core were recovered from the Kalayi and Mont Agoma Prospects in that
campaign.

 

This campaign focused on defining tin mineralisation at Kalayi and
understanding the structure within the approximately 200-metre-wide
polymetallic system at Mont Agoma. Resulting tin, copper, zinc and silver
assays were incorporated into the Company's geological model and the maiden
MRE, prepared by The MSA Group (Pty) Ltd.

 

The maiden MRE, derived from shallow drilling over a limited portion of the
licence area, delivered the following tonnages, and provides a robust
foundation for testing significantly greater potential at depth:

 

 Mont Agoma  3.16Mt  at 1.45% Cu, 0.16% Sn, 2.72% Zn and 14.3 g/t Ag
 Kalayi      0.33Mt  at 1.36% Sn

 

Drilling to date has generally extended to only ~220-250 metres depth and
across a relatively small fraction of the prospective licence area, leaving
substantial scope for further discovery both at depth and along strike.

 

A new near-surface tin zone, Mont Agoma East, intersected in one of the final
holes of the 2025 campaign, was not included in the maiden MRE as it formed a
single data point but now represents a promising and priority target within
the current drilling campaign.

 

During the year, metallurgical work was also commissioned to assess processing
routes to economically recover the significant copper resource sitting above
the tin zones at Mont Agoma.  Phase one of this work is nearing completion,
with results expected in due course.

 

Paul Barrett, Chief Executive Officer of Rome Resources, said:

"2025 has been a very active year, culminating in the publication of our first
Mineral Resource Estimate, which confirmed Bisie North as a large,
multi-metallic system. Importantly, the maiden MRE highlights how little of
the system has been tested to date and where the key opportunities lie as we
move deeper.

We are now embarking on the next phase of drilling at Mont Agoma and Kalayi
with a focus on testing deeper intercepts where we believe there is potential
for higher tin grades to emerge, consistent with regional analogues.

 

We were deeply saddened by the sudden passing of Mark Gasson last month.
However, he would have been pleased to know that our dedicated and experienced
in-country team has ensured continuity of operations.

 

Shareholder value growth remains the core objective of the business and our
approach to this is to maximise the share of investor funds going into the
ground. We look forward to building on the progress made in 2025 and advancing
the Bisie North project through 2026."

 

For further information, please contact:

 

 

 Investor questions on this announcement                          https://romeresources.com/link/PBJ17P (https://romeresources.com/link/PBJ17P)

 We encourage all investors to share questions

 on this announcement via our investor hub

 Rome Resources Plc                                               Tel. +44 (0)20 3143 6748

 Paul Barrett, Chief Executive Officer

 Allenby Capital Limited (Nominated Adviser and Joint Broker)     Tel. +44 (0)20 3328 5656

 John Depasquale / Vivek Bhardwaj (Corporate Finance)

 Kelly Gardiner / Lauren Wright (Sales & Corporate Broking)

 OAK Securities (Joint Broker)                                    Tel. +44 (0)20 3973 3678

 Jerry Keen, Head of Corporate Broking

 Henry Clarke, Head of Sales

 Camarco (Financial PR)                                             Tel. +44 (0)20 3757 4980

 Gordon Poole / Sam Morris

Subscribe to our news alert service: https://romeresources.com/auth/signup
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Qualified Person Statement

 

Dr Deon Vermaakt is a consultant of Rome Resources plc, a qualified geologist
and a registered Professional Natural Scientist (Geological Science) with the
South African Council for Natural Scientific Professions (SACNASP Reg. No.
400074/03). Dr Vermaakt is a qualified person (QP) under NI 43-101 and as
defined by the AIM Note for Mining, Oil and Gas Companies and has reviewed and
approved the scientific and technical information contained in this news
release.

 

Glossary of abbreviations

 

 "Ag"   Silver
 "Cu"   Copper
 "g/t"  Grams per tonne
 "kt"   Kiloton
 "m"    Metre
 "Mt"   Million tonnes
 "Sn"   Tin
 "Zn"   Zinc

 

 

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