ECR Minerals Increases Shareholding in Danglay Gold Project From 25% to 70%
ECR Minerals Increases Shareholding in Danglay Gold Project From 25% to 70%
ECR Minerals plc
ECR MINERALS plc
(“ECR Minerals”, “ECR” or the “Company”)
ECR Minerals increases shareholding in Danglay Gold Project from 25% to 70%
ECR Minerals plc (LON: ECR), the gold exploration and development company focused on Australia, is pleased to announce that following an agreement with Philippines based company Cordillera Tiger Gold Resources, Inc. (“Cordillera Tiger”, “Cordillera”), in which ECR has a 25% shareholding, the Cordillera Chairman & Vice President Ludevico Estacio has agreed to sell his shares (1,499,996 in total) to ECR Minerals.
The consideration for the additional 1,499,996 shares in Cordillera is 1,499,996.00 Philippine pesos (approx £22,000), which has been paid for in cash. Following this acquisition, ECR hold 2,333,329 Ordinary Shares in Cordillera representing 70% of its issued share capital.
ECR Chairman David Tang commented: “We are delighted to have the opportunity to acquire a majority stake in the Danglay Gold project from an existing shareholder, alongside whom we have worked over the years. We have already invested £1.2 million into the Danglay Gold Project license EP-006 to date, and while ECR’s priority and focus is on the continued development of our Australian assets, we believe today’s acquisition adds value to the ECR asset portfolio given the continued improvement in the political climate for the minerals industry in the Philippines.”
ECR CEO Andrew Haythorpe added: “Although I have yet to visit the Philippines and view the Danglay project first hand, I am very much aware that not only did Cordillera renew license EP-006 in July 2021 for a further two years, but alongside Cordillera, ECR engaged in a Community Development Programme in the Danglay area to foodpack assistance to families affected by COVID19.”
“I look forward to reporting further developments at Danglay to our shareholders, and I also look forward to working with Adam Jones and the geology team here on the ground in Australia to bring shareholders the latest developments and results from drilling campaigns at Creswick and Bailieston.”
Danglay Project Background
In July 2021, Cordillera Tiger successfully renewed Exploration License EP-006 at the Danglay gold project for a further two years. This licence is located in an established gold and copper mining district in the north of the Philippines.
Most recently ECR has been engaged in a Community Development Programme in the Danglay area. ECR, in the name of Cordillera, has provided foodpack assistance, helping to get rice, canned meat & fish delivered to families affected by COVID19 in the Danglay region.
As reported in the Annual Report on March 23rd 2021, ECR was at that stage entitled to a 25% interest in the Danglay gold project in the Philippines, which is held by Philippines corporation Cordillera Tiger Gold Resources, Inc. under an Exploration Permit. The issuance of the 25% shareholding in Cordillera Tiger to the Company had been delayed since 2016, largely due to a court case filed by an individual who is a minority shareholder and former director of Cordillera Tiger. This matter was successfully resolved (see announcement dated July 30th 2021)
The completion of today’s acquisition of a majority shareholding in Cordillera Tiger is timely. The ECR Directors believe the political climate for the minerals industry in the Philippines is improving and considers that the Danglay gold project has potential for further exploration to build upon the existing inferred mineral resource estimate of 63,500 ounces of gold at 1.55 g/t gold. This resource was reported by ECR in 2015 to the Canadian NI43-101 standard (see announcement dated 15 December 2015), based on exploration carried out at Danglay by ECR during 2014 and 2015. In addition to the resource, an NI43-101 target for further exploration (conceptual potential quantity and grade of mineralisation expressed as ranges) of 95,000 to 170,000 ounces of gold at 5 to 7.5 g/t was reported.
The Directors recognise that this resource statement is not prepared to a standard currently recognised by AIM and accordingly this information is provided for guidance purposes only and is subject to further work, verification and updating. In addition, targets for further exploration are not mineral resource estimates, are conceptual in nature, are used where there has been insufficient exploration to define the target as a mineral resource, and where it is uncertain if further exploration will result in the target being delineated as a mineral resource.
In the year to December 2021, Cordillera Tiger Gold Resources Inc recorded no revenues or profits, and a deferred mine exploration cost of 27,800,747 Philippine pesos (approx £406,000) (audited).
REVIEW OF ANNOUNCEMENT BY QUALIFIED PERSON
This announcement has been reviewed by Adam Jones, a director of ECR Minerals plc. Adam Jones is a professional geologist and is a Member of the Australian Institute of Geoscientists (MAIG). He is a qualified person as that term is defined by the AIM Note for Mining, Oil and Gas Companies.
MARKET ABUSE REGULATION (EU) No. 596/2014
The information contained within this announcement is deemed by the Company to constitute inside information as stipulated under the Market Abuse Regulations (EU) No. 596/2014 (MAR) as in force in the United Kingdom pursuant to the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018. Upon the publication of this announcement via Regulatory Information Service (RIS), this inside information is now considered to be in the public domain.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:
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ECR Minerals plc |
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7929 1010 |
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David Tang, Non-Executive Chairman |
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Andrew Haythorpe, CEO |
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Email: info@ecrminerals.com |
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Website: www.ecrminerals.com |
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WH Ireland Ltd |
Tel: +44 (0) 207 220 1666 |
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Nominated Adviser |
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Katy Mitchell / Andrew de Andrade |
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SI Capital Ltd |
Tel: +44 (0) 1483 413500 |
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Broker |
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Nick Emerson |
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Novum Securities Limited |
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7399 9425 |
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Broker |
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Jon Belliss |
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Blytheweigh |
Tel: +44 (0) 207 138 3204 |
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Public Relations |
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Tim Blythe |
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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 eight licence applications outstanding including two licence applications lodged in eastern Victoria. (Tambo gold project). MGA is currently drilling at both the Bailieston (EL5433) and Creswick (EL6148) projects and has an experienced exploration team with significant local knowledge in the Victoria Goldfields and wider region.
ECR also owns 100% of an Australian subsidiary LUX Exploration Pty Ltd (“LUX”) which has three licence applications covering 900 km2 covering a relatively unexplored area in Queensland, Australia.
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), Mercator Gold Australia Pty Limited 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 70% interest in the Danglay gold project; an advanced exploration project located in a prolific gold and copper mining district in the north of the Philippines, which has a 43-101 compliant resource. ECR also holds a royalty on the SLM gold project in La Rioja Province, Argentina and can potentially receive up to US$2.7 million in aggregate across all licences.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220426006285/en/
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