ECR Minerals #ECR – Audited Financial Results for Year Ended 30 September 2021

LONDON: 31 MARCH 2022 – ECR Minerals plc is pleased to announce its audited financial statements for the twelve months ended 30 September 2021 (“FY 2021”). The information presented below has been extracted from the Company’s Annual Report and Accounts for FY2021.

Copies of the Annual Report and Accounts for FY2021 with the notice of annual general meeting will be posted to shareholders today and will be available from today on the Company’s website www.ecrminerals.com. The Company intends to holds its annual general meeting at 9am on 25 April 2021 at Hurlingham Studios, Ranelagh Gardens, London SW6 3PA.

Market Abuse Regulations (EU) No. 596/2014

This announcement contains inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of the UK version of Regulation (EU) No 596/2014 which is part of UK law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018, as amended (“MAR”). Upon the publication of this announcement via a Regulatory Information Service, this inside information is now considered to be in the public domain.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:

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.

https://mercatorgold.com.au/

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.

https://luxexploration.com/

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 25% 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.

FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS

This announcement may include forward looking statements. Such statements may be subject to numerous known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from current expectations. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate and therefore actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward looking statements. Any forward-looking statements contained herein speak only as of the date hereof (unless stated otherwise) and, except as may be required by applicable laws or regulations (including the AIM Rules for Companies), the Company disclaims any obligation to update or modify such forward-looking statements because of new information, future events or for any other reason.

The Directors of ECR Minerals plc (the “Directors” or the “Board”) present their report and audited financial statements for the year ended 30 September 2021 for ECR Minerals plc (“ECR”, the “Company” or the “Parent Company”) and its subsidiaries on a consolidated basis (the “Group”)

Chairman’s Statement

As the COVID-19 pandemic continued to wreak havoc across the globe, for ECR the twelve months ending 30 September 2021 was one of great operational progress that saw our determined management team and workforce overcome adversity to deliver solid progress.

All that was achieved during the year was, however, overshadowed by the untimely and tragic death of our long serving CEO Craig Brown. Craig was a close personal friend and confidant of mine. Although he died a few weeks after the year-end, progress continued through our interim management committee. I speak for everyone working with and associated with the Company to say we miss him deeply.

Our operational hub is centred in the state of Victoria in Australia, where ECR’s wholly owned subsidiary Mercator Gold Australia Pty Ltd (“MGA”) has continued to develop Bailieston and Creswick, ECR’s two flagship gold exploration projects. In addition, ECR Minerals formed a subsidiary company, LUX Exploration Pty Ltd (“LUX”) in May 2021, to develop potential gold licence assets in the Lolworth Range area in Northern Queensland, and on 3 February 2022  the three Lolworth exploration licences were granted.

Throughout the year MGA conducted intensive drilling and soil sampling programmes at the Historic Reserve #3 (HR3) prospect, which includes the prospective Byron, Dan Genders, Scoulars and Maori Reefs, plus numerous cross-structures. Drilling results have provided us with some initial good cross-sections of gold grades and a detailed understanding of the geology that have, in turn, identified further targets. Post year-end results from core logging and soil sample testing have left us enthusiastic with the scale and development potential of HR3 as a whole.

An intensive campaign of drilling and soil sampling at Creswick has also provided us with some good initial gold grades and again a detailed understanding of the narrow vein geology of the region, which is similar in many ways to the Ballarat gold mine located directly south of the Creswick area. Unfortunately, the prevalence of COVID has resulted in delays to assay results and supply chain disruption, but the team on the ground have worked tirelessly to overcome these challenges.

Following a £2m (gross) fundraise in April 2021, ECR decided to use its strong cash position to invest into three properties; 35 Brewing Lane, Springmount (Creswick), 127 Nagambie –Rushworth Road (Bailieston) and 177 Bassett Road, Sebastian. Many mining groups operating in Victoria have encountered difficulties with land access in the region, so immediately the Brewing Lane and Nagambie-Rushworth Road properties provided full access and working rights across our flagship projects, while the Bassett Road property now provides accommodation for the Bendigo-based workforce. We believe that the buoyant Victoria property market should in time see a comfortable increase in the value of each property, giving ECR a far superior return to keeping cash on deposit. Despite the loss of Craig, we are hugely optimistic with the future and what we will achieve in the current year.

Through MGA, ECR also owns two exploration licence applications in eastern Victoria, known as the Tambo project. Post year-end, one of the exploration licences covering the Tambo River and Swifts Creek region was granted (see announcement dated 15 Decmber 2021).

Separately, approaching the end of the financial year, our 25% interest in the Danglay Gold project in the Philippines was confirmed. Previously, uncertainties over formalising our stake in the asset saw the value written down on our 2020 annual report, but I am happy to say this is no longer the case. Discussion on the Danglay valuation is addressed by our auditors in this report.

The costs of maintaining intensive drilling campaigns have all served to reduce the cash position during the year, which as at 31 March 2022 stands at £1.23m. Nonetheless, we have significantly advanced the value of our assets across the Group, together with our Victoria properties at this stage we do not believe there is an additional cash requirement in the immediate future.

Finally, while we look forward to progressing ECR interests in 2022, our thoughts remain with Craig and his family.

Weili (David) Tang

Chairman
31 March 2022

Link here to view the full report and financial statements