Orion seeks trading halt ahead of proposed capital raising announcement
Orion expects to make an announcement before the start of trade on June 27
25 June 2024 - 09:38
byJacqueline Mackenzie
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A shipment of copper. Picture: REUTERS/ELISEO FERNANDEZ
Miner Orion Minerals has requested an immediate trading halt be placed on its securities as it expects to make a material announcement in relation to a proposed capital raising.
The trading halt is requested until the commencement of trade on Thursday June 27, or such earlier time as Orion makes an announcement to update the market.
Orion, which is listed on the JSE and Australian Securities Exchange, expects to make the announcement before the start of trade on June 27.
On Monday the company reported strong assay results from the confirmation diamond drilling programme in the Flat Mines area at its Okiep Copper Project in the Northern Cape.
Orion wants to see the Okiep project become its second base-metal production hub in the Northern Cape, alongside its flagship Prieska Copper-Zinc Mine.
“The latest results add further momentum to Orion’s development strategy for the Okiep Copper Project (OCP), building on the initial results reported on April 22 and confirming the geology and endowment of the Flat Mines Area,” CEO Errol Smart said on Monday.
Results received to date from the past three of the five planned and completed holes at Flat Mine East have confirmed historical information from drilling by Goldfields of SA in the 1990s.
Flat Mine East, which is a virgin discovery that is blind to surface, will form a key part of Orion’s early production plan for the Okiep Copper Project.
“We are pleased to be nearing completion of our bankable feasibility studies so that we can progress to project finance and mine development on our brownfields redevelopment sites, in parallel with ongoing drilling and exploration to expand our resource base on our surrounding highly prospective mineral rights,” Smart said.
In May, the copper developer said it had reached the final stages in its Okiep copper project acquisition, which was first announced in 2021.
Orion, through its subsidiary, the New Okiep Mining Company (NOM), is acquiring prospecting rights and the mining right at Okiep from Southern African Tantalum Mining.
In 2022 the company reached an agreement with the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) in which the state-owned development finance institution took a 43.75% share in the NOM while Orion kept the balance. In terms of the deal, the IDC agreed to provide R34.5m to support Okiep’s pre-development costs, including the completion of feasibility studies.
The IDC has approved R43.75m of additional funding to fund its proportional share of drilling and operating costs at Okiep.
Support our award-winning journalism. The Premium package (digital only) is R30 for the first month and thereafter you pay R129 p/m now ad-free for all subscribers.
Orion seeks trading halt ahead of proposed capital raising announcement
Orion expects to make an announcement before the start of trade on June 27
Miner Orion Minerals has requested an immediate trading halt be placed on its securities as it expects to make a material announcement in relation to a proposed capital raising.
The trading halt is requested until the commencement of trade on Thursday June 27, or such earlier time as Orion makes an announcement to update the market.
Orion, which is listed on the JSE and Australian Securities Exchange, expects to make the announcement before the start of trade on June 27.
On Monday the company reported strong assay results from the confirmation diamond drilling programme in the Flat Mines area at its Okiep Copper Project in the Northern Cape.
Orion wants to see the Okiep project become its second base-metal production hub in the Northern Cape, alongside its flagship Prieska Copper-Zinc Mine.
“The latest results add further momentum to Orion’s development strategy for the Okiep Copper Project (OCP), building on the initial results reported on April 22 and confirming the geology and endowment of the Flat Mines Area,” CEO Errol Smart said on Monday.
Results received to date from the past three of the five planned and completed holes at Flat Mine East have confirmed historical information from drilling by Goldfields of SA in the 1990s.
Flat Mine East, which is a virgin discovery that is blind to surface, will form a key part of Orion’s early production plan for the Okiep Copper Project.
“We are pleased to be nearing completion of our bankable feasibility studies so that we can progress to project finance and mine development on our brownfields redevelopment sites, in parallel with ongoing drilling and exploration to expand our resource base on our surrounding highly prospective mineral rights,” Smart said.
In May, the copper developer said it had reached the final stages in its Okiep copper project acquisition, which was first announced in 2021.
Orion, through its subsidiary, the New Okiep Mining Company (NOM), is acquiring prospecting rights and the mining right at Okiep from Southern African Tantalum Mining.
In 2022 the company reached an agreement with the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) in which the state-owned development finance institution took a 43.75% share in the NOM while Orion kept the balance. In terms of the deal, the IDC agreed to provide R34.5m to support Okiep’s pre-development costs, including the completion of feasibility studies.
The IDC has approved R43.75m of additional funding to fund its proportional share of drilling and operating costs at Okiep.
mackenziej@arena.africa
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