The information contained within
this announcement is deemed to constitute inside information as
stipulated under the retained EU law version of the Market Abuse
Regulation (EU) No. 596/2014 (the "UK MAR") which is part of UK law
by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018. The
information is disclosed in accordance with the Company's
obligations under Article 17 of the UK MAR. Upon the publication of
this announcement, this inside information is now considered to be
in the public domain.
FIRST CLASS METALS
PLC
23 December
2024
The 79th GRP Limited
Strategic Funding & Winter Work Programme
First Class Metals PLC ("First Class
Metals," "FCM," or the "Company"), (LSE: FCM, FWB: WN9), the
Ontario focused gold and critical metals explorer is pleased to
announce that The 79th GRP Limited ("79th GRP") has increased its
existing loan to the Company ("Loan") by £200,000, bringing the
total Loan to £700,000. This follows the previously announced
conditional strategic equity funding by 79th GRP of approximately
£2.18 million ("Conditional Equity Funding"). The additional
funding underlines 79th GRP's commitment to advancing the proposed
Conditional Equity Funding process and supporting the Company's
strategic objectives as the partnership progresses.
Key
Highlights:
·
Existing Loan
with 79th GRP increased from £500,000 to
£700,000: This additional funding
comes as a further demonstration of 79th GRP's commitment to
supporting FCM's strategic goals with the planned Winter
Exploration Plans for North Hemlo & Sunbeam now fully
funded.
·
Funding to
advance North Hemlo & Sunbeam
properties, including:
o Very
Low Frequency (VLF) geophysical survey across priority targets at
North Hemlo
o Lake
sediment sampling programme to identify additional targets at North
Hemlo
o Wide
scale lake sediment sampling across 'newly' staked claims at
Sunbeam to identify new targets
Loan Facility Update:
The new loan agreement increases the
total facility from £500,000 to £700,000, to be drawn in a single
tranche. Key terms of the loan include:
I. Repayment Date:
The Loan is repayable on the earlier of 25 April
2025 and completion of the first stage of the Conditional Equity
Funding or, if such should not occur, the day after the relevant
general meeting.
II.
Interest
Only: Interest is payable at a 15%
annual rate throughout the term.
III.
Secured
Facility: The Loan is secured by a
debenture over the assets of First Class Metals PLC.
IV.
Equity
Conversion: The Loan together with
accrued but unpaid interest and fees will be capitalised into
ordinary shares of the Company at a price of 1.7p per share upon
completion of the first stage of the Conditional Equity Funding, as
detailed in the announcement dated 18 December 2024.
For more details on the original
loan facility, please refer to the announcements dated 13 June 2024
and 8 October 2024.
James Knowles, Executive Chairman,
commented:
"This additional £200,000 loan from the 79th GRP underscores
their continued confidence in our assets and strategy, as well as
their commitment to the previously announced £2.18 million
conditional equity investment. Their financial support strengthens
our ability to execute fully funded Winter Exploration Plans for
North Hemlo and Sunbeam, enabling us to maintain momentum across
our portfolio.
This latest funding highlights the alignment between FCM and
the 79th Group as we work collaboratively towards completing the
conditional investment process. We are excited about the
opportunities this partnership presents to drive forward the
development of our northern Ontario projects and deliver
significant value for our shareholders."
Marc Sale, Chief Executive Officer,
commented:
"I
am excited that we can initiate a funded Winter Work Programme
which will ensure that, when the spring field season starts, we can
maximise the efforts on the two main properties. The Winter Work
Programme in conjunction with the stripping and the results from
the recently completed soil sampling programmes at North Hemlo and
Sunbeam will provide focus in the coming months, the intention
being to drill one or both properties."
Dave Webster, Chairman, The 79th GRP Limited,
commented:
"The Seventy Ninth Group is deeply committed to investing
heavily in the development of FCM's assets, aligning with its
strategic focus on generating significant value across the
portfolio for shareholders. This proactive investment approach
underscores the Group's dedication to driving sustainable growth
and maximising value through disciplined and strategic asset
management."
Looking Forward
Following the recent announcement of
the conditional subscription agreement with 79th GRP, First Class
Metals PLC is pleased to highlight the strengthening of its
financial position through the increased loan facility provided by
79th GRP. This additional funding, bringing the Loan to £700,000,
ensures that key exploration initiatives, including the funded
Winter Work Programme for North Hemlo and Sunbeam, can progress as
planned.
The increased loan commitment
further demonstrates 79th GRP's confidence in FCM's strategy and
the potential of our northern Ontario assets. This strategic
financial support not only enables us to advance our current
exploration programmes but also underscores the growing alignment
between the two companies as we work together to create long-term
value.
The Board is fully committed to
capitalising on these developments and leveraging the opportunities
that this strengthened partnership presents. With the support of
79th GRP, we are well-positioned to achieve our objectives and
deliver meaningful progress across our portfolio.
We look forward to providing further
updates as we continue to advance our projects and deliver value to
shareholders.
.
Ends
For Further
Information:
Engage with us by asking questions, watching
video summaries, and seeing what other shareholders have to say.
Navigate to our Interactive
Investor hub here:
www.firstclassmetalsplc.com
For
further information, please contact:
James Knowles, Executive Chair
Email: JamesK@Firstclassmetalsplc.com
Tel: 07488 362641
Marc J Sale, CEO
Email: MarcS@Firstclassmetalsplc.com
Tel: 07711 093532
Novum Securities Limited (Financial Adviser)
David Coffman / George Duxberry
Website: www.novumsecurities.com
Tel: (0)20 7399 9400
Axis Capital Markets (Broker)
Lewis Jones / Ben Tadd
Website: Axcap247.com
Tel: (0)203 026 0449
NOTES TO EDITORS
Qualified
Person
The technical disclosures contained
in this announcement have been drafted in line with the Canadian
Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum standards and guidelines and
approved by Marc J. Sale, who has more than 30 years in the gold
exploration industry and is considered a Qualified person owing to
his status as a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Mining and
Metallurgy.
First Class Metals PLC -
Background
First Class Metals listed on the LSE
in July 2022 and is focused on metals exploration in Ontario,
Canada which has a robust and thriving junior mineral exploration
sector. In particular, the Hemlo 'camp' near Marathon, Ontario is a
proven world class address for gold exploration, featuring the
Hemlo gold deposit operated by Barrick Gold (>23M oz gold
produced), with the past producing Geco and Winston Lake base metal
deposits also situated in the region.
FCM currently holds 100% ownership
of seven claim blocks covering over 180km² along a 150km strike of
the Hemlo-Schreiber-Dayohessarah greenstone belt, exploring for
gold, base metals, and rare earth element mineralization. In
addition, FCM is carrying out a joint venture with Palladium One on
the West Pickle Lake Property in the region, a drill-proven
ultra-high-grade Ni-Cu project.
The flagship property North Hemlo
had a high-definition low level magnetic Heli-borne survey flown in
April 2022, this was followed with ground prospecting which
ultimately defined the 'Dead Otter Trend' which is a discontinuous
4.5km gold anomalous trend with a 19.6g/t Au peak grab sample. This
sampling being the highest known assay ever recorded on the North
Limb of Hemlo.
In October 2022 FCM completed the
option to purchase the historical high-grade past-producing Sunbeam
gold mine near Atikokan, Ontario, ~15 km southeast of Agnico
Eagle's Hammond Reef gold deposit (3.3 Moz of open pit probable
gold reserves).
FCM acquired the Zigzag Project near
Armstrong, Ontario in March 2023. The property features
Li-Ta-bearing pegmatites in the same belt as Green Technology
Metals' Seymour Lake Project, which contains a Mineral Resource
estimate of 9.9 Mt @ 1.04% Li2O. Zigzag was drilled prior to
Christmas 2023 and results have now been released.
The significant potential of the
properties for precious, base and battery metals relates to
'nearology', since all properties lie in the same districts as
known deposits (Hemlo, Hammond Reef, Seymour Lake), and either
contain known showings, geochemical or geophysical anomalies, or
favourable structures along strike from known showings (e.g. the
Esa project, with an inferred Hemlo-style shear along strike from
known gold occurrences).
Forward Looking
Statements
Certain statements in this announcement may contain
forward-looking statements which are based on the Company's
expectations, intentions and projections regarding its future
performance, anticipated events or trends and other matters that
are not historical facts. Such forward-looking statements can be
identified by the fact that they do not relate only to historical
or current facts. Forward-looking statements sometimes use words
such as 'aim', 'anticipate', 'target', 'expect', 'estimate',
'intend', 'plan', 'goal', 'believe', or other words of similar
meaning. These statements are not guarantees of future performance
and are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other
factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from
those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements.
Given these risks and uncertainties, prospective investors are
cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking
statements. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of
such statements and, except as required by applicable law, the
Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise publicly any
forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information,
future events or otherwise.