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ECR Minerals #ECR – Unaudited Half-Yearly Results for the Six Months Ended 31 March 2020
ECR Minerals plc, the gold exploration and development company, is pleased to announce unaudited half-yearly financial results for the six months to 31 March 2020 for the Company as consolidated with its subsidiaries (the “Group”), along with a review of significant developments during the period and subsequently.
HIGHLIGHTS
- Victoria, Australia continues to enjoy a gold exploration boom and interest from third parties in ECR’s projects in Victoria is strong, with several discussions taking place in respect of potential commercial transactions over our Bailieston and Creswick projects.
- Announced results from exploration activities in Victoria included positive findings of an alteration study on RC drill cuttings from the Creswick project (March 2020), and confirmation of very high grade gold mineralisation at Creswick by the completion of ‘full bag’ testing (November 2019).
- In January 2020, MGA, ECR’s 100% owned Australian subsidiary, received a research and development expenditure refund of A$555,212 (approximately £295,515) from the Australian government.
- The Company completed the sale of its Argentine subsidiary Ochre Mining SA in February 2020 and retains an NSR royalty of up to 2% to a maximum of USD 2.7 million in respect of future production from the SLM gold project.
- Post-period end, the Company sold licences comprising the Avoca, Moormbool and Timor gold exploration projects in Victoria, Australia to Fosterville South Exploration Ltd for total potential cash consideration of up to A$2.5 million announced in April 2020.
- Post-period end, the Company’s cash position was strengthened by a £500,000 equity financing and the receipt of A$500,000 from Fosterville South Exploration Ltd in April 2020.
- Group comprehensive expense of £1,846,202 for the six months ended 31 March 2020 (£480,368 for the six months ended 31 March 2019) and net assets of £2,206,211 at 31 March 2020 (£3,876,921 at 31 March 2019).
- The Group Operating Loss for the six months ended 31 March 2020 reduced to £369,102, compared with £438,145 for the six months ended 31 March 2019.
- Despite the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on the global economy, the Directors’ believe ECR is in a robust financial position and continues to provide shareholders with exposure to an exciting range of gold projects.
FINANCIAL RESULTS
For the six months ended 31 March 2020 the unaudited financial statements of the Group record a total comprehensive expense of £1,846,202, including, a one off exceptional item of (£1,602,539) which pertains to the disposal of the Company’s Argentine subsidiary Ochre Mining SA. This amount cannot remain capitalised under applicable accounting standards, although this amount could be recovered from future royalty payments in relation to the SLM gold project in Argentina, which is owned by Ochre Mining SA, if they progress to production.
The Group’s net assets were £2,275,479 at 31 March 2020, compared with £3,876,921 at 31 March 2019. The reduction in net assets has occurred largely due to the disposal of Ochre Mining SA, as explained above.
The Group held £166,852 of cash and cash equivalents at 31 March 2020, compared with £622,457 at 31 March 2019. The current cash position of the Group today is £742,379.
In January 2020, Mercator Gold Australia Pty Ltd (“MGA”), ECR’s 100% owned Australian subsidiary, received a research and development (R&D) refund of A$555,212 (approximately £295,515) from the Australian government. This refund relates to qualifying expenditure incurred by MGA in the year ended 30 September 2019. The qualifying R&D activities pertain to research into turbidite-hosted gold deposits within MGA’s exploration licences in Victoria. Post the period end, the Group’s cash position benefited from a £500,000 equity financing completed by the Company and the receipt of AUD$500,000 from the sale of licences in April 2020.
The financial information included in the 31 March 2019 announcement have been restated due to a change in the accounting treatment of the R&D refunds received by MGA. As well as the refund noted above, a refund of A$318,971.73 (approximately £175,188) was received in May 2019. This was previously categorised as other income in the interims to 31 March 2019. The amount received has been offset against exploration assets following the restatement.
REVIEW OF PRINCIPAL DEVELOPMENTS DURING THE PERIOD AND SUBSEQUENTLY
Sale of Avoca, Moormbool and Timor gold exploration projects (the “Licences”) in Victoria, Australia to Fosterville South Exploration Ltd
In April 2020, ECR announced that Fosterville South Exploration Ltd, which listed on the TSX Venture Exchange that same month, had agreed to acquire MGA’s 100% ownership of the Licences by way of Currawong Resources Pty Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of Fosterville South, for total potential cash consideration of up to A$2.5 million, as follows:
- A$500,000 in cash, which was paid to MGA immediately;
- A further payment of A$1 for every ounce of gold or gold equivalent of measured resource, indicated resource or inferred resource estimated within the area of one or more of the Licences in any combination or aggregation of the foregoing, up to a maximum of A$1,000,000 in aggregate;
- A further payment of A$1 for every ounce of gold or gold equivalent produced from within the area of one or more of the Licences, up to a maximum of A$1,000,000 in aggregate.
ECR considered the Avoca, Moormbool and Timor licences to be high-potential but non-core to the Company, and the Company maintains exposure to upside from the projects as a result of future resource estimation or production, through a royalty arrangement as set out above.
Alteration Study – Creswick Gold Project
In February 2020, MGA commissioned Dr Dennis Arne to carry out an alteration study of cuttings (chips) generated by the RC drilling at the Creswick project in 2019. Dr Arne is a preeminent consulting geochemist in Victoria, whose experience includes previous and on-going reviews of geochemistry at the highly successful Fosterville gold mine in Central Victoria owned by Kirkland Lake Gold.
The results of the study were announced on 27 March 2020, and showed good indications of hydrothermal fluid flow related to gold mineralisation in a number of drill holes at Creswick. Importantly, the variation in the results, with some areas ‘lighting up’ and others not, is potentially useful for identifying gold-bearing shoots.
‘Full Bag’ Sampling – Creswick Gold Project
In February 2019 MGA completed a total of 1,687 metres of reverse circulation (RC) drilling in 17 holes at Creswick, targeting multiple quartz vein orientations within the Dimocks Main Shale (“DMS”). The drilling identified more extensive quartz than anticipated, in a zone exceeding 60 metres in width (more than twice the 25 metres expected), with quartz identified in more than one third of the 1,687 metres drilled. Gold mineralisation was identified in the majority of holes, with grades in nine holes ranging from 0.6 g/t gold to 44.63 g/t gold (1.44 oz/t).
MGA’s geologists hypothesised an extreme nuggety distribution of gold based on the results of drilling and other observations, including capturing a small 0.27 g nugget in gravity tests conducted on a single sample bag. In order to assess the significance of this effect, MGA’s consultants devised a testing program using gravity and electrostatic concentration (GEC) on full bags of RC drill cuttings, which would constitute the whole sample recovered from each metre of drilling (less sub-samples obtained at the time of drilling via a splitter mounted on the drill rig). In nuggety gold systems, increasing sample size increases the chance of nuggets being captured in the sample, and thus being appreciated as part of the gold endowment of the system.
Using the GEC method on the full bags, MGA was able to subject larger, more representative sample sizes to analysis. A total of 129 ‘full-bag’ samples were analysed using the GEC process. In parallel, 74 duplicate sub-samples obtained at the time of drilling via the rig-mounted splitter were analysed by the Leachwell method at Gekko Systems. This was done to enable comparison with the assay results (obtained by the same method) for the first set of sub-samples, to assist in classifying the nugget effect as extreme, major or minor.
Grade variability due to the nugget effect was demonstrated by the results of the exercise, which were announced in November 2019, but some consistency between results was also seen, and indicates the nugget effect may be less severe than initially thought. Overall, the programme confirmed the presence of nuggety gold mineralisation in the Dimocks Main Shale (DMS) at Creswick, some of which is very high grade.
MGA’s tenement position at Creswick covers approximately 7 kilometres of the DMS trend, and the 2019 drilling only tested approximately 300 metres of this. ECR therefore believes there is significant potential upside in the project.
Sale of SLM Gold Project
In February 2020, the Company sold its wholly owned Argentine subsidiary Ochre Mining SA, which holds the SLM gold project in La Rioja, Argentina, to Hanaq Argentina SA (“Hanaq”). The sale allows ECR to focus on its core gold exploration activities in Australia.
Hanaq is a Chinese-owned company engaged in lithium, base and precious metals exploration in Northwest Argentina including Salta, Jujuy and La Rioja, with a highly experienced management team.
ECR retains an Net Smelter Return (“NSR”) royalty of up to 2% to a maximum of USD 2.7 million in respect of future production from the SLM gold project. ECR believes that Hanaq has the operational capabilities and access to Chinese investment capital necessary to put the SLM project into production, subject to the usual prerequisites such as further exploration and feasibility studies being successfully completed (if deemed necessary by Hanaq) and to the necessary permits for production being obtained.
The founder and CEO of Hanaq Group, of which Hanaq Argentina SA is part, is Mr Xiaohuan (Juan) Tang, who has a substantive track record in Latin America, including responsibility for the successful permitting of the Pampa de Pongo iron ore project in Peru in his former capacity as General Manager of Jinzhao Mining Peru. Pampa de Pongo is one of the largest iron ore deposits in Latin America. Mr Tang has degrees from Tsinghua University in China, and Imperial College, Cambridge University and Oxford University in the UK.
Outlook, Future Prospects and COVID 19
The Directors’ of ECR Minerals plc are very positive regarding the outlook for the Company, gold and the prospectively of the Company’s projects in Victoria, Australia.
As a consequence of COVID 19, governments around the world have imposed restrictions on international travel; restrictions have also been imposed on domestic travel within Australia. These restrictions have meant that the board have been unable to visit the assets. However, the team on the ground in Australia continue the work at site without interruption. Accordingly, there has been no significant negative impact on the Group from the coronavirus.
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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Craig Brown, Director & 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)161 832 2174 |
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Nominated Adviser |
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Katy Mitchell/James Sinclair-Ford |
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SI Capital |
Tel: +44 (0)1483 413500 |
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Broker |
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Nick Emerson |
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FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS
This announcement may include forward looking statements. Such statements may be subject to a number of 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 as a result of new information, future events or for any other reason.
ABOUT ECR MINERALS PLC
ECR is a mineral exploration and development company. ECR’s wholly owned Australian subsidiary Mercator Gold Australia Pty Ltd has 100% ownership of the Bailieston and Creswick gold projects in central Victoria, Australia.
Following the sale of the Avoca, Moormbool and Timor gold projects in Victoria, Australia to Fosterville South Exploration Ltd (TSX-V: FSX), ECR has the right to receive up to A$2 million in payments subject to future resource estimation or production at those projects.
ECR has earned 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, and holds a royalty on the SLM gold project in La Rioja Province, Argentina.
Link here for financial statements
Junior Gold Explorers Continue to Shine Amid Global Market Volatility
The year 2020 has already delivered what HM Queen Elizabeth would refer to in her end of year speech as an Annus Horribilis. It is still only April 2020, and Covid-19 continues to wreak almost biblical levels of havoc and human tragedy across the globe. In our previous article on junior gold explorers, we stated that it seemed trite to discuss investment opportunities in the midst of the ongoing battle against CoronaVirus. But life does go on, and so does mining exploration, even with the movement restrictions currently in place.
Gold Set To Rebound Following Monetary Stimulus Measures
Although gold has retreated from the late March highs of $1700 oz, at $1646 the yellow metal still sits close to year highs, well above the 2019 highs of $1277 last August.
Kitco, a website dedicated to gold and metals believes a major rebound in gold is just around the corner as prices look ready to surge on massive global monetary policy stimulus and unprecedented fiscal policies. United Overseas Bank (UOB) head of markets strategy Heng Koon said their forecast is “for gold to rebound significantly in the quarters ahead to USD $1,650 in 2Q20, $1,700 in 3Q20, $1,750 in 4Q20 and $1,800 in 1Q21.”
Image courtesy of BP Trends
“Once the USD funding crunch potentially dissipates across 2Q20, massive global monetary policy easing coupled with unprecedented fiscal policy stimulus will light the fuel for further gold strength.”
Heng also added that global central banks “have not only floored rates near zero but many have also entered into large Quantitative Easing programs. These significant stimuli bode well for gold and will be the fuel for gold’s rally once the USD funding crunch abates across 2Q.”
This compelling backdrop continues to drive healthy levels of investor interest in junior gold explorers. Across the globe, the focus on gold is manifesting itself in investor speculation into small cap explorers with quality projects. Most small explorers however only have one or two key project in their asset arsenal, leaving little room for any disappointment. However, there are a handful of micro-cap gold exploration plays offering a broad spread of assets, and consequentially an attractive risk profile with significant upside potential.
Once such company is AIM listed ECR Minerals (AIM: ECR), which has 100% ownership of five gold exploration projects in Central Victoria, Australia, and four exploration licences in the north-eastern Yilgarn region of Western Australia.
ECR’s Bailieston at the Centre of the Current Gold Exploration Boom
ECR’s Victoria projects include Bailieston, Avoca, Timor, Creswick and Moormbool. Indeed Bailieston, which targets epizonal / epithermal gold mineralisation of the Melbourne Zone, is at the epicentre of the current gold exploration boom in Victoria, being located close to the highly successful Fosterville mine owned by Kirkland Lake Gold. Recently, Australian mining giant Newmont arrived in the district with an application for ground immediately to the north of the Black Cat prospect.
Study Data Endorses Creswick Potential
During Q4 2019, ECR reported ‘nuggety gold mineralisation’ in the Dimocks Main Shale prospect at Creswick, some of which proved to be exceptionally high grade. Creswick has long been viewed as a potential pivot project for ECR after the highest grade duplicate result of 80.97 g/t gold came from a 1 metre interval that originally assayed 44.63 g/t, confirming the original findings announced on 8 May 2019.
On March 27th, ECR announced the results of a study carried out by Dr Dennis Arne, a pre-eminent consulting geochemist in Victoria, whose experience includes extensive consultancy at the highly successful Fosterville gold mine in Central Victoria owned by Kirkland Lake Gold.
The well-regarded Dr Arne’s involvement was seen as a solid endorsement of Creswick’s potential, and indeed the results did not disappoint, as ECR CEO Craig Brown pointed out.
“We are very pleased with the results of this study, which show good indications of hydrothermal fluid flow related to gold mineralisation in a number of drill holes at Creswick. Importantly, the variation in the results, with some areas ‘lighting up’ and others not, is potentially useful for identifying gold-bearing shoots.”
Brown added that the results “underline the significant gold exploration potential that we believe exists at Creswick, where our tenement position covers approximately seven kilometres of the Dimocks Main Shale (DMS) trend, of which our 2019 drilling tested only approximately 300 metres.”
Windidda Progress
ECR’s Windidda Gold Project, based in the Yilgarn region of Western Australia originally consisted of a package of nine exploration licence applications covering a 1,600 square kilometre area with the potential to host komatiite hosted nickel-copper-PGE (platinum group element) mineralisation, as well as orogenic gold. Five exploration licences have been granted, and in its full year results statement at the end of March 2020, ECR said the remaining four licence applications had been withdrawn, in light of objections to the expedited grant procedure from native title parties and the findings of preliminary desktop work to assess the prospectivity of the licence areas.
Consolidation, R&D Cash Refund and Focus
A micro-cap gold explorer can only operate so many projects and licenses, and indeed with the burgeoning potential of Creswick now at front and centre, the board took the decision to sell its wholly owned Argentine subsidiary Ochre Mining SA, which holds the SLM gold project in La Rioja, Argentina. The sale to Hanaq Argentina SA still sees ECR retain a Net Smelter Royalty of up to 2% to a maximum of US$2.7m in respect of future production from the SLM gold project, while removing ongoing costs associated with acquiring and running an exploration license.
There has been further good news on the funding front too, as the group also received a significant cash refund under the Australian government’s R&D Tax Incentive scheme. A$318,972 (approximately £171,000) was received in relation to the financial year ended 30 June 2018, and received a further refund of A$555,212 (approximately £295,515) in relation to the fifteen month period ended 30 September 2019.
The qualifying R&D activities relate to research into turbidite-hosted gold deposits within the Company’s exploration licences in Victoria. It goes without saying that these two refunds have also provided a significant boost to ECR’s cash position.
The biggest boost however came on Monday 6 April 2020, when, in the midst of the upheaval and disruption caused by COVID-19, ECR announced that it had raised a further GB£500,000 in a placing at 0.5p. That ECR was able raise funds in some of the most challenging stock market conditions in living memory more than anything else underscores the quality of the asset portfolio.
Still trading on a miserly GB£2.5m capitalisation, the market has ascribed little more than the value of the administrative work undertaken to secure the licenses, with no premium whatsoever for the results from Creswick or any of the other work undertaken to ascertain the prospectivity and value of ECR’s projects.
Selected Junior Gold Explorers Offer Great Value
Amid unprecedented efforts to limit the spread of CoronaVirus, the fiscal and monetary stimulus measures announced by the world’s major economies over the past month are global policy events without precedent in peacetime. Gavyn Davies of the FT pointed out that the increase in fiscal spending and loans in the US this year alone “will reach more than 10 percent of GDP, larger than the rise in the federal deficit through 2008 and 2009.”
This wholly supports the UOB / Kitco view that the gold price is set for a major rebound in the months ahead. As such, this rebound is likely to be reflected in the valuations of junior gold mining explorers with strong project portfolios. Fully funded for the coming year, and with nine projects and licenses in key territories across Australia, ECR Minerals should be integral to any junior gold explorer portfolio as the world grapples with the challenges and uncertainties of the Covid-19 pandemic.
References:
Kitco – Here’s how gold prices will get to $1800 in the next three quarters – https://www.kitco.com/news/2020-04-01/Here-s-how-gold-prices-are-going-to-1-800-in-the-next-three-quarters-UOB.html
FT – Gavyn Davies: Can the world afford fiscal and monetary stimulus on this scale? – https://www.ft.com/content/0f289d20-6e97-11ea-89df-41bea055720b
PBOC Easing Boosts Gold Price & Investment Case for Junior Gold Explorers
Investors seeking to capitalise on a bullish gold market in 2020, and in particular the next raft of discoveries, will no doubt be aware of the impact that the easing in monetary policy by the Peoples Bank of China (PBOC) has had across markets in China, still reeling from the CoronaVirus.
With the yellow metal long viewed as the definitive safe haven investment, markets have also seen a surge in interest at the more speculative end of the gold spectrum, most specifically across junior gold explorers. AIM listed ECR Minerals (AIM: ECR) is one such company currently in focus.
Creswick Potentially Transformational for ECR
Prior to the recent surge in the gold price, ECR had already seen a transformational 2019 in regard to developments across it’s six flagship projects.The final quarter saw developments across the explorer’s key Creswick project in Victoria, Australia, with ‘nuggety gold mineralisation’ confirmed in the Dimocks Main Shale (DMS) prospect at Creswick, some of which proved to be exceptionally high grade.
Creswick is viewed as a potentially transformational project for the company, particularly given that the highest grade duplicate result of 80.97 g/t gold came from a 1 metre interval that originally assayed 44.63 g/t, confirming the original findings announced on 8 May 2019.
On February 20th, ECR announced it had appointed Dr Dennis Arne to carry out a lithogeochemical study of cuttings (chips) generated by reverse circulation (RC) drilling at Creswick in 2019. Dr Arne is a preeminent consulting geochemist in Victoria, whose experience includes extensive consultancy at the highly successful Fosterville gold mine in Central Victoria owned by Kirkland Lake Gold. Bringing someone of this calibre in to review the drilling samples is a solid endorsement of Creswick’s potential, and has set tongues wagging amongst the investing cognoscenti across social media channels. In typical understated fashion, ECR said the results of the study “are anticipated to be valuable for the purposes of future exploration at the Creswick.”
Elsewhere in Central Victoria
Activity continues across ECR’s other projects in Central Victoria, with a number of potential exploration programmes for the Bailieston project, (including further drilling at the Blue Moon prospect), are under consideration, along with soil and stream sediment sampling in the Cherry Tree South and Ponting’s areas.
ECR Interests Realigned
With six key projects across Australia, a country estimated to have the largest gold reserves globally, ECR’s CEO Craig Brown and the board have taken the decision to realign the group’s many interests to focus on Victoria Gold Projects, (Creswick, Bailieston, Avoca, Timor & Moormbool) and the Western Australia Windidda Project.
In this regard, on February 5th the group announced the sale of the SLM Gold Project in Argentina to Hanaq Argentina SA, a Chinese-owned company engaged in lithium, base and precious metals exploration.
The move sees ECR retain an NSR (Net Smelter) royalty of up to 2% to a maximum of US$2.7 million in respect of future production from the SLM gold project. Craig Brown stated that he was.. pleased to retain exposure to potential upside from the SLM gold project in the form of a royalty on future production..we believe that Hanaq has the operational capabilities and access to Chinese investment capital necessary to put the SLM project into production. And more importantly, it aligns the group’s operational activities exclusively across the six key Australian projects.
Windidda Progress
While activities across the Victoria projects are well documented, (not least because of the the Bailieston project is adjacent to a prospect territory acquired in 2018 by global mining giant Newmont), ECR has been pushing ahead its Windidda Gold Project based in the Yilgarn region of Western Australia. This consists of a package of nine exploration licence applications covering a 1,600 square kilometre area with the potential to host orogenic gold deposits. At the end of January ECR published an update on Windidda, stating that four exploration licences had been granted in the north-eastern Yilgarn, and announced a further license award on February 20th.
Aside from Gold, the region is also highly prospective for nickel-copper-PGE (platinum group element) mineralisation, so consequently ECR has commissioned a consultant to complete additional geophysical modelling and a review of historical activity reports for areas to the south of Windidda to better understand the potential prospectivity of the project.
Undervalued
The sale of the SLM Gold project has certainly saved ECR from the ongoing costs associated with acquiring and running an exploration license. There was further good news on the funding front too, as the group also received a cash refund for research and development (R&D) expenditure of AU$555,212 (approx GB£295,515), added to which for the year to 30 September 2019, the group carried forward corporate income tax losses of AU$ 66,341,587 (approximately GB£35.3 million) which are expected to be available for offset against future taxable gains.
Despite this, the current market capitalisation of GB£3.6 million reflects little more than the value of the administrative work undertaken to secure the licenses, with no premium whatsoever for the results from Creswick or any of the other work undertaken to ascertain the prospectivity and value of ECR’s projects.
Safe haven
While it seems trite to discuss investment opportunities in the midst of the shock, havoc and terrible human cost wrought on China and the world by CoronaVirus, the event has already significantly impacted on many of the larger resource and energy groups who provide raw materials to satisfy China’s enormous burgeoning economy.
As already highlighted, the impact on the China stock market (and global markets) has to some degree been mitigated by quantitative easing measures by the PBOC, but the consequential weakness in resource and energy stocks has inevitably driven investors to seek returns elsewhere, i.e. gold. So on February 20th, Beijing cut the one-year loan prime rate to 4.05% from 4.15%, prompting China’s banks to further lower the benchmark borrowing costs for new corporate and household loans.
On the subject of rate cuts and easing, Neils Christensen, a journalist at leading bullion website Kitco stated on February 17th that analysts “remain optimistic that (gold) prices can push higher as easing from the People’s Bank of China could ignite a further drop in global interest rates.”
This view is backed by other pundits too. Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank, said that economists are still trying to estimate the full impact the spreading virus will have on the global economy. He added that this uncertainty will continue to support gold prices. “We have seen monumental demand destruction this past month and that won’t be resolved anytime soon,” he said. “Central banks will be forced to ease again, but the question is just how much impact further easing will have.”
As China and the world struggles to get to grips with limiting the spread of CoronaVirus, the strength in the gold price looks likely to be sustained throughout the year. This strength is likely to be reflected in across junior gold mining explorers with strong project portfolios. With the raft of project developments and drilling updates scheduled for early 2020, ECR is likely to benefit from this continued focus.
by Alan Green
ECR Minerals #ECR CEO Craig Brown updates on progress at Share Talk
ECR Minerals plc #ECR CEO Craig Brown updates on progress, provides his view on the Australian Gold exploration sector and discusses the recent sale of the SLM gold project at Share Talk. Link here
ECR Minerals #ECR – Sale of SLM Gold Project
ECR Minerals plc (LON: ECR), the precious metals exploration and development company, is pleased to announce the sale of its wholly owned Argentine subsidiary Ochre Mining SA (“Ochre”), which holds the SLM gold project in La Rioja, Argentina.
HIGHLIGHTS:
- ECR retains an NSR royalty of up to 2% to a maximum of USD 2.7 million in respect of future production from the SLM gold project;
- The purchaser, Hanaq Argentina SA (“Hanaq”), is a Chinese-owned company engaged in lithium, base and precious metals exploration in Northwest Argentina including Salta, Jujuy and La Rioja, with a highly experienced management team;
- The sale allows ECR to focus on its core gold exploration activities in Australia.
Craig Brown, Chief Executive Officer, commented:
“We are pleased to retain exposure to potential upside from the SLM gold project in the form of a royalty on future production, and we believe that Hanaq has the operational capabilities and access to Chinese investment capital necessary to put the SLM project into production, subject to the usual prerequisites. Moreover, the transaction enables ECR to concentrate its resources on our core gold exploration activities in Australia.”
Further Information
Ochre’s sole asset is the SLM gold project, which comprises seven mining licences in La Rioja, Argentina. Hanaq has purchased 100% ownership of Ochre from ECR. The consideration for the acquisition is the grant to ECR of a 2% net smelter return (NSR) royalty in respect of four of the licences, and a 1% NSR royalty in respect of the other three licences. The NSR is capped at USD 2.7 million in aggregate (across all licences). This is the equivalent of approximately £2.07 million, based on 1.3031 GBP/USD exchange rate (Bloomberg closing rate 04/02/2020).
The directors of the Company understand that the founder and CEO of Hanaq Group, of which Hanaq Argentina SA is part, is Mr Xiaohuan (Juan) Tang, who has a substantive track record in Latin America, including responsibility for the successful permitting of the Pampa de Pongo iron ore project in Peru in his former capacity as General Manager of Jinzhao Mining Peru. Pampa de Pongo is one of the largest iron ore deposits in Latin America. Mr Tang has degrees from Tsinghua University in China, and Imperial College, Cambridge University and Oxford University in the UK.
More information regarding the Hanaq group can be found at the following link:
http://www.hanaqgroup.com/en/index.html
Commencement of production at the SLM project under Hanaq’s ownership is not a certainty, and is subject, inter alia, to further exploration and feasibility studies being successfully completed (if deemed necessary by Hanaq) and to the necessary permits for production being obtained. Upon the receipt of any future royalties, the Company intends to apply the funds to its exploration and development activities.
The book value of Ochre and the SLM project in ECR’s unaudited half-yearly results for the six months ended 31 March 2019 was £1,072,210. In its audited financial statements for the year ended 30 September 2019, Ochre reported no turnover and no profits, and net assets of approximately £170,000 (equivalent). Ochre has one employee.
MARKET ABUSE REGULATIONS (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). 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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Craig Brown, Director & CEO |
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Email: |
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Website: www.ecrminerals.com |
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WH Ireland Ltd |
Tel: +44 (0)161 832 2174 |
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Nominated Adviser |
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Katy Mitchell/James Sinclair-Ford |
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SI Capital Ltd |
Tel: +44 (0)1483 413500 |
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Broker |
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Nick Emerson |
ABOUT ECR MINERALS PLC
ECR is a mineral exploration and development company. ECR’s wholly owned Australian subsidiary Mercator Gold Australia Pty Ltd has 100% ownership of the Avoca, Bailieston, Creswick, Moormbool and Timor gold exploration projects in central Victoria, Australia and the Windidda project in the Yilgarn region, Western Australia.
ECR has earned a 25% interest in the Danglay epithermal gold project, an advanced exploration project located in a prolific gold and copper mining district in the north of the Philippines. An NI43-101 technical report was completed in respect of the Danglay project in December 2015 and is available for download from ECR’s website.
ECR Minerals #ECR confirms two directors participate in strategic financing
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E In total, including the funds raised in the first part of the financing announced on 17 December 2018, ECR has raised £700,000 through the through the issue of 100,000,000 new ordinary shares at 0.70p per share (“Financing Shares”). Each Financing Share has a warrant attaching to subscribe for a further new ordinary share in ECR Minerals plc at a price of 1.125p within two years of the admission date of the above financing shares resulting in the issue of 100,000,000 1.125p warrants. ADMISSION OF STRATEGIC FINANCING SHARES AND TOTAL VOTING RIGHTS Admission is expected to occur on or around 21 December 2018. Following Admission of the Financing Shares, ECR’s issued ordinary share capital will comprise 445,840,783 ordinary shares of 0.001 pence. This number will represent the total voting rights in the Company, and, following admission of both the placing and subscription shares, may be used by shareholders as the denominator for the calculation by which they can determine if they are required to notify their interest in, or a change to their interest in, the Company under the Financial Conduct Authority’s Disclosure and Transparency Rules. The new shares will rank pari passu in all respects with the ordinary shares of the Company currently traded on AIM. On Admission, Craig Brown will hold 2,977,842 ordinary shares representing 0.67% of the Company’s issued share capital. Likewise, David Tang will hold 1,428,572 ordinary shares representing 0.32% of the Company’s issued shares capital. ABOUT ECR MINERALS PLC ECR is a mineral exploration and development company. ECR’s wholly owned Australian subsidiary Mercator Gold Australia has 100% ownership of the Avoca, Bailieston, Creswick, Moormbool and Timor gold exploration licences in central Victoria, Australia. ECR has earned a 25% interest in the Danglay epithermal gold project, an advanced exploration project located in a prolific gold and copper mining district in the north of the Philippines. An NI43-101 technical report was completed in respect of the Danglay project in December 2015 and is available for download from ECR’s website. ECR’s wholly owned Argentine subsidiary Ochre Mining has 100% ownership of the SLM gold project in La Rioja, Argentina. Exploration at SLM has focused on identifying small tonnage mesothermal gold deposits which may be suitable for relatively near-term production. MARKET ABUSE REGULATIONS (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). 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:
NOTIFICATION AND PUBLIC DISCLOSURE OF TRANSACTIONS BY PERSONS DISCHARGING MANAGERIAL RESPONSIBILITIES AND PERSONS CLOSELY ASSOCIATED WITH THEM
NOTIFICATION AND PUBLIC DISCLOSURE OF TRANSACTIONS BY PERSONS DISCHARGING MANAGERIAL RESPONSIBILITIES AND PERSONS CLOSELY ASSOCIATED WITH THEM
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 |
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EC
ECR Minerals #ECR – Directorate Change
The directors of ECR Minerals plc announce that Christian St. John-Dennis has resigned as a director of the Company with immediate effect, in order to focus on his other business interests.
Craig Brown, Chief Executive Officer of ECR, commented: “The Directors would like to thank Christian for his assistance to the Company to date, and wish him well in his future endeavours. The Company’s intention is to appoint a new Non-Executive Director and a further announcement will be made to the market in due course.”
The Company confirms that it expects to release assay results at its Blue Moon project tomorrow.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:
| ECR Minerals plc | Tel: +44 (0)20 7929 1010 | ||
| David Tang, Non-Executive Chairman | |||
| Craig Brown, Director & CEO | |||
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Email: |
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Website: www.ecrminerals.com |
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| WH Ireland Ltd | Tel: +44 (0)161 832 2174 | ||
| Nominated Adviser | |||
| Katy Mitchell/James Sinclair-Ford | |||
| Optiva Securities Ltd | Tel: +44 (0)203 137 1902 | ||
| Broker | |||
| Graeme Dickson | |||
| FlowComms | Tel: +44 (0)7891 677 441 | ||
| Investor Relations | |||
| Sasha Sethi |
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.
ECR Minerals #ECR – Unaudited Half-Year Results for the Six Months Ended 31 March 2018
UNAUDITED HALF-YEARLY RESULTS FOR THE SIX MONTHS ENDED 31 MARCH 2018 AND UPDATE
LONDON: 29 JUNE 2018 – The directors of ECR Minerals plc are pleased to announce the Company’s unaudited half-yearly results for the six months to 31 March 2018, along with an update on the Group’s activities.
HIGHLIGHTS:
- Five gold exploration licences in Victoria, Australia now held by ECR’s wholly owned subsidiary Mercator Gold Australia Pty Ltd, with a sixth licence applied for.
- Consultancy Terra Resources identified 47 targets for potential follow-up within the Avoca, Bailieston, Moormbool and Timor exploration licences, including 15 high priority areas.
- Blue Moon, Bung Bong and Monte Christo gold prospects drilled, with results for Bung Bong and Monte Christo announced in June 2018.
- Blue Moon assay results received very recently and will be announced early next week.
- Acquisition of Creswick gold project, considered highly prospective for gold mineralisation.
- Reduced group comprehensive expense of £321,433 for 6 months ended 31 March 2018, (£432,339 for six months ended 31 March 2017).
- Net assets of £3,413,791 at 31 March 2018 (£2,382,561 at 31 March 2017).
CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER’S REPORT
ECR has continued to concentrate its efforts on gold exploration in Victoria, Australia, although the Directors regularly review potential new projects both inside and outside Australia. We view Victoria as a relatively overlooked gold exploration destination, given its impressive past gold production of around 85 million ounces, and the presence of a number of successful modern gold mines in the state. In particular, we note that the Fosterville mine, which is located in the same district as ECR’s Bailieston and Moormbool projects, has produced more than one million ounces to date, and is now under the ownership of Canada’s Kirkland Lake Gold. Kirkland Lake’s 2018 production guidance for Fosterville is 260-300,000 ounces from high grade underground mining operations.
ECR’s wholly owned Australian subsidiary Mercator Gold Australia Pty Ltd (“MGA”) now has five exploration licences in Victoria (Avoca – EL5387; Bailieston – EL5433; Creswick – EL006184, Moormbool – EL006280; and Timor – EL006278), with a sixth licence under application and expected to be granted shortly (Creswick North).
In December 2017, the Company received the results of an interpretation and targeting study using open-file geophysical data covering the Avoca, Bailieston, Moormbool and Timor exploration licences. The study was carried out for MGA by the consultancy firm Terra Resources and identified a total of 47 targets for potential follow-up, including 15 high priority areas. The geophysical compilation datasets included regional airborne magnetics and radiometrics and ground gravity data, which were processed and imaged in order to perform geological interpretation and target generation. The high priority targets identified included areas already considered to be of significant interest by ECR, such as the Byron, Black Cat and Cherry Tree prospects at Bailieston, the magnetic anomaly at Moormbool, and the Leviathan trend at Timor. Several new target areas were also identified.
Early in 2018, Dr Rodney Boucher, an experienced Victorian gold geologist, commenced a review of all available data on MGA’s exploration licences (at that time numbering four licences), complemented by geological mapping and geochemical surveys in selected areas. The purpose of this work was to help define targets for a diamond drilling programme extending across a number of MGA’s prospects. The geochemical surveys utilised a portable XRF to delineate proxy minerals associated with gold.
Drilling at Blue Moon, Bung Bong and Monte Christo prospects
Drilling commenced at the Bung Bong prospect in April 2018, and five holes were completed. Thereafter, the rig moved to the Monte Christo prospect, and then to the Blue Moon prospect, with two holes drilled at each, after which the programme was brought to a close. The Blue Moon prospect is part of the Bailieston project area (EL5433), while Bung Bong and Monte Christo are part of the Avoca project area (EL5387). Assay results were announced in early June 2018 for the drilling at Bung Bong and Monte Christo. Results from the drilling at Blue Moon have been received very recently, and an announcement is being prepared for release early next week.
All five holes at Bung Bong and the two holes at Monte Christo fulfilled their intended purpose, which was to test the structural architecture of the target areas. The holes were the first ever drilled at both Bung Bong and Monte Christo, and gold mineralisation was intersected at both prospects, although no high-grade shoots were encountered.
Blue Moon disseminated gold prospect
The target at Blue Moon is a disseminated gold deposit, as opposed to the quartz reef systems at Bung Bong and Monte Christo. The drill holes at Blue Moon were designed to test arsenic and antimony anomalies identified by the soil geochemical survey completed by MGA earlier in the year. An arsenic-anomalous zone up to 40 m wide and more than 200 m long was identified, and previous work has shown anomalism over a further 150 m to the west. Previous rock chip samples include results of 12.1, 10.1 and 7.0 g/t, and previous soil surveys identified gold to 5.0 g/t (as detailed in the technical report identified in the Company’s announcement dated 20 April 2016). After the assay results from the drilling at Blue Moon have been fully interpreted, planning can begin for the next phase of exploration in Victoria.
Acquisition of Creswick gold project
MGA acquired 100% ownership of the Creswick licence in April 2018 and applied for Creswick North shortly after. The licences are considered highly prospective for gold mineralisation hosted within the Dimocks Main Shale, which extends over a 15 km trend from the mining centre of Ballarat to the south, including approximately 3 km within the Creswick project area. In the project area, the Dimocks Main Shale (DMS) is an approximately 25 m wide shale containing bedding- and cleavage-parallel auriferous quartz veins with potential for bulk mining. Only two holes have been drilled to test the DMS within the Creswick licence, both in the 1990s. The results of this drilling included an intercept of 2 m at 12.28 g/t gold. The best previous drill intercept into the DMS to the south of Creswick is 2 m at 176 g/t gold. ECR has not yet commenced field activities at Creswick.
Argentina and Philippines projects
ECR continues to have 100% ownership of the SLM gold project in La Rioja, Argentina, and is entitled to a 25% interest in the Danglay gold project in the northern Philippines. The status of both projects remains as disclosed in the Company’s annual report and accounts published in 2018.
FINANCIAL RESULTS
For the six months ended 31 March 2018 the financial statements of the Company as consolidated with its subsidiaries (the “Group”) record a total comprehensive expense of £321,433, the largest component of which is other administrative expenses of £240,719, which relate primarily to the development of the Company’s projects, but which cannot be capitalised under applicable accounting standards. The Group reported a total comprehensive expense of £432,339 for the six months ended 31 March 2017.
The Group’s net assets were £3,413,791 at 31 March 2018 compared with £2,382,561 at 31 March 2017.
Craig Brown
Chief Executive Officer
ABOUT ECR
ECR is a mineral exploration and development company. ECR’s wholly owned Australian subsidiary Mercator Gold Australia has 100% ownership of the Avoca, Bailieston and Timor gold projects in Victoria, Australia.
ECR has earned a 25% interest in the Danglay epithermal gold project, an advanced exploration project located in a prolific gold and copper mining district in the north of the Philippines. An NI43-101 technical report was completed in respect of the Danglay project in December 2015, and is available for download from ECR’s website.
ECR’s wholly owned subsidiary Ochre Mining has a 100% interest in the SLM gold project in La Rioja, Argentina. Exploration at SLM has focused on identifying small tonnage mesothermal gold deposits which may be suitable for relatively near term production.
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 | |||||
| Craig Brown, Director & 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)161 832 2174 | ||||
| Nominated Adviser | |||||
| Katy Mitchell/James Sinclair-Ford | |||||
| Optiva Securities Ltd | Tel: +44 (0)203 137 1902 | ||||
| Broker | |||||
| Graeme Dickson | |||||
| FlowComms | Tel: +44 (0)7891 677 441 | ||||
| Investor Relations | |||||
| Sasha Sethi |
FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS
This announcement may include forward looking statements. Such statements may be subject to a number of 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 as a result of new information, future events or for any other reason
| Consolidated Income Statement | |||||||
| For the six months ended 31 March 2018 | |||||||
| Six months ended
31 March 2018 |
Six months ended
31 March 2017 |
Year ended
30 September 2017 |
|||||
| Continuing operations | £ | £ | £ | ||||
| Other administrative expenses | (240,719) | (431,492) | 509,545 | ||||
| Currency exchange differences | (2,507) | (1,335) | (3,186) | ||||
| Total administrative expenses | (243,226) | (432,827) | (512,731) | ||||
| Operating loss | (243,226) | (432,827) | (512,731) | ||||
|
Loss on disposal of available for sale financial assets |
– | – | (1) | ||||
|
Fair value movements – available for sale financial |
(5,429) | (1,108) | 1,255 | ||||
| (248,655) | (433,935) | (511,477) | |||||
| Finance income | 710 | 131 | 353 | ||||
| Finance income and costs | 710 | 131 | 353 | ||||
|
Loss for the period before taxation |
(247,945) | (433,804) | (511,124) | ||||
| Income tax | – | – | – | ||||
| Loss for the period | (247,945) | (433,804) | (511,124) | ||||
| Loss attributable to: | |||||||
| Owners of the parent | (247,945) | (433,804) | (511,124) | ||||
| Loss per share – basic and diluted | (0.10)p | (0.33)p | (0.31)p | ||||
| Consolidated Statement of Comprehensive Income | |||||||
| For the six months ended 31 March 2018 | |||||||
| Six months ended
31 March 2018 |
Six months ended
31 March 2017 |
Year ended
30 September 2017 |
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|
£ |
£ |
£ |
|||||
| Loss for the period | (247,945) | (433,804) | (511,124) | ||||
|
Items that may be reclassified subsequently to |
|||||||
| Gain/(losses) on exchange translation | (73,488) | 1,465 | (51,524) | ||||
|
Other comprehensive income/(expense) for the |
(73,488) | 1,465 | (51,524) | ||||
| Total comprehensive expense for the period | (321,433) | (432,339) | (562,649) | ||||
| Attributable to: | |||||||
| Owners of the parent | (321,433) | (432,339) | (562,649) | ||||
| Consolidated Statement of Financial Position | |||||||
| At 31 March 2018 | |||||||
| As at
31 March 2018 |
As at
31 March 2017 |
As at
30 September 2017 |
|||||
| Assets | £ | £ | £ | ||||
| Non–current assets | |||||||
| Property, plant and equipment | 5,751 | 11,483 | 8,694 | ||||
| Exploration assets | 2,675,346 | 2,556,688 | 2,668,747 | ||||
| Total non-current assets | 2,681,097 | 2,568,171 | 2,677,441 | ||||
| Current assets | |||||||
| Trade and other receivables | 46,138 | 9,927 | 54,888 | ||||
| Available for sale financial assets | 16,841 | 19,906 | 22,269 | ||||
| Taxation | 20,283 | 70,816 | – | ||||
| Cash and cash equivalents | 701,499 | 107,508 | 1,082,994 | ||||
| 784,761 | 208,157 | 1,160,151 | |||||
| Total assets | 3,465,858 | 2,776,328 | 3,837,592 | ||||
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Current liabilities |
|||||||
| Trade and other payables | 52,066 | 393,767 | 102,367 | ||||
| Interest bearing borrowings | – | – | – | ||||
| Total liabilities | 52,066 | 393,767 | 102,637 | ||||
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Net assets |
3,413,792 | 2,382,561 | 3,735,225 | ||||
| Equity attributable to owners of the parent | |||||||
| Share capital | 11,282,812 | 11,281,695 | 11,282,812 | ||||
| Share premium | 43,823,335 | 42,508,217 | 43,823,335 | ||||
| Exchange reserve | (291,547) | (165,070) | (218,059) | ||||
| Other reserves | 1,381,998 | 1,215,259 | 1,381,998 | ||||
| Retained losses | (52,782,806) | (52,457,540) | (52,534,860) | ||||
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Total equity |
3,413,792 | 2,382,561 | 3,735,225 | ||||
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Consolidated statement of changes in equity |
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For the six months ended 31March 2018 |
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|
Share |
Share |
Exchange
reserves |
Other
reserves |
Retained
reserves |
Total
Equity |
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| £ | £ | £ | £ | £ | £ | ||||||||
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At 1 October 2016 |
11,281,628 | 42,441,553 | (166,535) | 1,147,717 | (52,023,736) | 2,680,627 | |||||||
| Loss for the period | – | – | – | – | (433,804) | (433,804) | |||||||
| Loss on exchange translation | – | – | 1,465 | – | – | 1,465 | |||||||
| Total comprehensive income /(expense) | – | – | 1,465 | – | (433,804) | (432,339) | |||||||
| Share based payments | – | – | – | 67,542 | – | 67,542 | |||||||
| Shares issued in payment of creditors | 67 | 66,664 | – | – | – | 66,731 | |||||||
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At 31 March 2017 |
11,281,695 | 42,508,217 | (165,070) | 1,215,259 | (52,457,540) | 2,382,561 | |||||||
| Loss for the period | – | – | – | – | (77,320) | (77,320) | |||||||
| Loss on exchange translation | – | – | (52,989) | – | – | (52,989) | |||||||
| Total comprehensive income /(expense) | – | – | (52,989) | – | (77,320) | (130,309) | |||||||
| Shares issued | 1,109 | 1,552,455 | – | – | – | 1,553,564 | |||||||
| Share issue costs | – | (84,878) | – | – | – | (84,878) | |||||||
| Share based payments | – | (166,739) | – | 166,739 | – | – | |||||||
| Shares issued in payment of creditors | 8 | 14,280 | – | – | – | 14,288 | |||||||
|
At 30 September 2017 |
11,282,812 | 43,823,335 | (218,059) | 1,381,998 | (52,534,860) | 3,735,226 | |||||||
| Loss for the period | – | – | – | – | (247,945) | (247,945) | |||||||
| Loss on exchange translation | – | – | (73,488) | – | – | (73,488) | |||||||
| Total comprehensive income /(expense) | – | – | (73,488) | – | (247,945) | (321,433) | |||||||
|
At 31 March 2018 |
11,282,812 | 43,823,335 | (291,547) | 1,381,998 | (52,782,805) | 3,413,793 | |||||||
| Consolidated Cash Flow Statement | |||||||
| For the six months ended 31 March 2018 | |||||||
|
Six months ended |
Six months ended
31 March 2017 |
Year ended
30 September 2017 |
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| £ | £ | £ | |||||
| Net cash flow used in operations | (301,408) | (241,445) | (569,016) | ||||
| Investing activities | |||||||
| Increase in exploration assets | (6,600) | (191,080) | (231,140) | ||||
| Purchase of property, plant & equipment | – | (3,776) | (6,174) | ||||
| Interest received | – | – | 353 | ||||
| Net cash used in investing activities | (6,600) | (122,856) | (236,961) | ||||
| Financing activities | |||||||
| Proceeds from issue of shares and warrants | – | – | 1,468,686 | ||||
| Net cash from financing activities | – | – | 1,468,686 | ||||
| Net change in cash and cash equivalents | (308,008) | (364,301) | 662,709 | ||||
| Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of the period | 1,082,994 | 471,809 | 471,809 | ||||
| Effect of change in exchange rates | (73,487) | – | (51,524) | ||||
| Cash and cash equivalents at end of the period | 701,499 | 107,508 | 1,082,994 | ||||
Notes to the Condensed Half-Yearly Financial Statements
For the six months ended 31 March 2018
1. Basis of preparation
The condensed consolidated half-yearly financial statements incorporate the financial statements of the Company and its subsidiaries (the “Group”) made up to 31 March 2018. The results of the subsidiaries are consolidated from the date of acquisition, being the date on which the Company obtains control, and continues to be consolidated until the date such control ceases.
These condensed half-yearly consolidated financial statements do not include all of the information required for full annual financial statements, and should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements of the Group for the year ended 30 September 2017. They have been prepared in accordance with the accounting policies adopted in the last annual financial statements for the year to 30 September 2017. The report of the auditors on those accounts was unqualified and did not contain a statement under section 498(2) or (3) of the Companies Act 2006, but did include a reference to matters which the auditors drew attention to by way of emphasis without qualifying their report.
The accounting policies have been applied consistently throughout the Group for the purpose of preparation of these consolidated half-yearly financial statements.
The financial information in this statement does not constitute full statutory accounts within the meaning of Section 434 of the Companies Act 2006. The financial information for the six months ended 31 March 2018 and 31 March 2017 is unaudited. The comparative figures for the year ended 30 September 2017 were derived from the Group’s audited financial statements for that year as filed with the Registrar of Companies. They do not constitute the financial statements for that year.
2. Going concern
The Directors are satisfied that the Company has sufficient resources to continue its operations and to meet its commitments for the immediate future. The Group therefore continues to adopt the going concern basis in preparing its condensed half-yearly financial statements.
3. Cash and cash equivalents
Cash includes petty cash and cash held in bank current accounts. Cash equivalents include short-term investments that are readily convertible to known amounts of cash and which are subject to insignificant risk of changes in value.
4. Loss per share
| Six months ended
31 March 2018 |
Six months ended
31 March 2017 |
Year ended
30 September 2017 |
|||||
|
Weighted number of shares in issue during the |
247,605,240 | 130,179,729 | 166,559,125 | ||||
| £ | £ | £ | |||||
|
Loss from continuing operations attributable to |
(247,945) |
(433,804) |
(511,124) |
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The disclosure of the diluted loss per share is the same as the basic loss per share as the conversion of share options decreases the basic loss per share thus being anti-dilutive.
5. Income tax
No charge to tax arises on the results and no deferred tax provision arises or deferred tax asset is identified.
6. Related party transactions
The Directors are the only key management.
Directors’ remuneration during the period was as follows:
|
Six months ended 31 |
Six months ended |
Year ended
30 September 2017 |
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| £ | £ | £ | |||||
| Directors’ emoluments | 68,400 | 108,885 | 208,232 | ||||
| Employer’s national insurance contributions | 8,312 | – | 10,402 | ||||
| Share-based payments | – | 67,542 | 67,542 | ||||
| Total emoluments | 76,712 | 176,427 | 286,176 | ||||
There were no other related party transactions during the period.
7. Shares and options transactions during the period
During the period, no new shares or options were issued.
8. Consolidated Cash Flow Statement
|
Six months ended |
Six months ended |
Year ended
30 September 2017 |
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| £ | £ | £ | |||||
| Operating activities | |||||||
| Loss for the period, before tax | (247,946) | (433,804) | (511,124) | ||||
| Adjustments:
Depreciation expense, property, plant and equipment |
2,943 | (1,470) | 3,717 | ||||
| Provision and impairment of investment and loans | – | 1,108 | – | ||||
| Impairment of other current assets | – | 2,672 | – | ||||
| Loss on available for sale financial assets | – | – | (1,255) | ||||
| Interest income | – | – | (353) | ||||
| Loss on revaluation of investments | 5,428 | 1,465 | 1 | ||||
| Interest on convertible loans | – | – | 135,118 | ||||
| Share based payments | – | 67,542 | 67,542 | ||||
| Shares issued in lieu of expense payments | – | 66,731 | 81,019 | ||||
| (Increase) /decrease in accounts receivable | (1,097) | (4,457) | (36,899) | ||||
| Increase/(Decrease) in accounts payable | (50,300) | 91,525 | (199,876) | ||||
| (Increase)/decrease in taxation | (10,436) | (32,757) | 28,212 | ||||
| Net cash flow used in operations | (301,408) | (241,445) | (569,016) | ||||
9. Post period end events
On 13 April 2018 the Company announced positive geochemical results and the start of a drilling programme at Bung Bong gold prospect in Victoria, Australia
On 20 April 2018 the Company announced that the Company’s wholly owned subsidiary Mercator Gold Australia Pty Ltd (“MGA”) has acquired 100% ownership of the Creswick gold project in central Victoria, Australia with no consideration payable by ECR or MGA.
On 3 May 2018 the Company announced that drilling has been completed at the Bung Bong gold prospect and drilling activities will commence shortly at the Monte Christo prospect.
On 22 May 2018 the Company announced that the Monte Christo drilling had been successfully completed and drilling commenced at the Blue Moon gold-antimony target.
On 5 June 2018 the Company announced the results of diamond drilling at the Bung Bong and Monte Christo gold prospects in Central Victoria, Australia.
ECR Minerals #ECR – Result of AGM
RESULT OF ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
LONDON: 24 April 2018 – The board of directors of ECR Minerals plc are pleased to announce that at the Company’s annual general meeting held today all resolutions were passed.
ABOUT ECR
ECR is a mineral exploration and development company. ECR’s wholly owned Australian subsidiary Mercator Gold Australia has 100% ownership of the Avoca, Bailieston, Creswick, Moormbool and Timor gold exploration licences in central Victoria, Australia.
ECR has earned a 25% interest in the Danglay epithermal gold project, an advanced exploration project located in a prolific gold and copper mining district in the north of the Philippines. An NI43-101 technical report was completed in respect of the Danglay project in December 2015, and is available for download from ECR’s website.
ECR’s wholly owned Argentine subsidiary Ochre Mining has 100% ownership of the SLM gold project in La Rioja, Argentina. Exploration at SLM has focused on identifying small tonnage mesothermal gold deposits, which may be suitable for relatively near-term production.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:
| ECR Minerals plc | Tel: +44 (0)20 7929 1010 | |||
| David Tang, Non-Executive Chairman | ||||
| Craig Brown, Director & 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)161 832 2174 | |||
| Nominated Adviser | ||||
| Katy Mitchell/James Sinclair-Ford | ||||
| Optiva Securities Ltd | Tel: +44 (0)203 137 1902 | |||
| Broker | ||||
| Graeme Dickson | ||||
| FlowComms | Tel: +44 (0)7891 677 441 | |||
| Investor Relations | ||||
| Sasha Sethi |