REG - ECR Minerals PLC - Expanded strategic focus

ECR MineralsAnnouncement

30/08/2024 07:00

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RNS Number : 2307C  ECR Minerals PLC  30 August 2024

30 August 2024

ECR Minerals plc

("ECR Minerals", "ECR" or the "Company")

 

Expanded strategic focus

 

ECR Minerals plc (LON: ECR), the exploration and development company focused
on gold in Australia announces that, in order to diversify the Company's
business, the Board is currently considering prospective investments in
producing helium assets in the US.

 

The Company's shareholders may be aware of the recent excitement around helium
prospects following a sustained price increase for the gas.  With no natural
or manufactured substitute currently available and critical applications in
electronics, defence, space and medical devices (amongst others), the Board
believes there is good reason to expect this robust pricing to be
maintained.  Given the roles of ECR's chairman and managing director at
Voyager Life plc, there is now strong in-house understanding of the helium
sector and the most suitable economic models.  This will enable the Board to
review potential opportunities in the helium sector in-house and therefore
limit external overhead expenditure.

 

In assessing potential helium investments, the Board's strategic focus will be
on assets which have recognised or historic helium production and access to
existing infrastructure (a gathering system and processing facility) and are
either: (i) in production; (ii) capable of near-term production; or (iii) able
to process helium.

 

As an established market, one of the world's existing largest helium producers
and with extensive and developed infrastructure, the US is considered the most
likely location to target potential new opportunities.

 

Over the past 12 months, ECR has implemented a low-cost operating structure
and, should the Company expand its operations into the helium market, it is
intended that this principle will be adhered to.  The Company would seek an
appropriate level of outsourcing and would work with trusted partners to
ensure that any Company funds committed would be spent on operations and not
on overheads.  In addition, should any investment require the issue of new
ordinary shares in the Company, such new ordinary shares will not be issued at
a discount to the current market price of an ordinary share.

 

 

Nick Tulloch, Chairman of ECR Minerals plc, commented:

 

"We have spent many months streamlining ECR's business and improving its
efficiency.  The robust model that we have established now allows us to
consider other opportunities.

 

"As stake holders in ECR, we naturally have an acute focus on our share price
and I can reassure shareholders that any investment would be based on
attractive terms to our Company in addition to having a probability of
material upside.

 

"Although it is often tempting to think that the important part of developing
a natural resources play is to find the resource, in fact we consider that it
is production and sales that really define a company.  There are many
substantial resource deposits globally that are simply not economic - or
possible - to extract and sell.  This is particularly the case with helium.
Despite its high value, it is not a straightforward element to process or
transport.

 

"Therefore, as we examine this possible expansion of ECR, it is critical that
we source assets that are capable of near term production, and therefore
sales, of helium and access to nearby infrastructure, both gathering lines and
a processing plant, is a must."

 

For further information please contact:

 

 ECR Minerals Plc                               Tel: +44 (0) 1738 317 693

 Nick Tulloch, Chairman                         info@ecrminerals.com (mailto:info@ecrminerals.com)

 Andrew Scott, Director                         www.ecrminerals.com

                                              (http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ecrminerals.com%2F&esheet=51817334&newsitemid=20180605005810&lan=en-US&anchor=www.ecrminerals.com&index=1&md5=820ad49dc1fc2c84a0538453c017bc1b)

 Allenby Capital Limited                        Tel: +44 (0)20 3328 5656

 Nominated Adviser                              info@allenbycapital.com (mailto:info@allenbycapital.com)

 Nick Naylor / Alex Brearley / Vivek Bhardwaj

 Axis Capital Markets Limited                   Tel: +44 (0) 203 026 0320

 Broker

 Ben Tadd / Lewis Jones

 SI Capital Ltd                                 Tel: +44 (0) 1483 413500

 Broker

 Nick Emerson

 Brand Communications                           Tel: +44 (0) 7976 431608

 Public & Investor Relations

 Alan Green

 

About ECR Minerals Plc

 

ECR Minerals is a mineral exploration and development company. ECR's wholly
owned Australian subsidiary Mercator Gold Australia Pty Ltd ("MGA") has 100%
ownership of the Bailieston and Creswick gold projects in central Victoria,
Australia, has six licence applications outstanding which includes one licence
application lodged in eastern Victoria (Tambo gold project).

 

ECR also owns 100% of an Australian subsidiary LUX Exploration Pty Ltd ("LUX")
which has three approved exploration permits covering 946 km2 over a
relatively unexplored area in Lolworth Range, Queensland, Australia. The
Company has also submitted a license application at Kondaparinga which is
approximately 120km2 in area and located within the Hodgkinson Gold Province,
80km NW of Mareeba, North Queensland.

 

Following the sale of the Avoca, Moormbool and Timor gold projects in
Victoria, Australia to Fosterville South Exploration Ltd (TSX-V: FSX) and the
subsequent spin-out of the Avoca and Timor projects to Leviathan Gold Ltd
(TSX-V: LVX), MGA has the right to receive up to A$2 million in payments
subject to future resource estimation or production from projects sold to
Fosterville South Exploration Limited.  ECR holds a royalty on the SLM gold
project in La Rioja Province, Argentina which could potentially receive up to
US$2.7 million in aggregate across all licences.

 

MGA also has approximately A$75 million of unutilised tax losses incurred
during previous operations.

 

 

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