TIDMHZM
RNS Number : 8464X
Horizonte Minerals PLC
27 December 2023
NEWS RELEASE
27 December 2023
HORIZONTE SIGNS INTERIM US$20 MILLION FUNDING PACKAGE
HIGHLIGHTS:
-- Horizonte agrees a US$20 million interim funding package
provided by Orion, Glencore and La Mancha
-- The funding package is expected to provide liquidity while a
full funding solution is progressed
-- Agreement with existing Senior Lenders to defer interest payments due 31 December 2023
-- The Company continues to review the outstanding Project
capital expenditure and schedule re-estimate, necessary to
implement a full funding solution
Horizonte Minerals Plc (AIM/TSX: HZM) ("Horizonte" or the
"Company") the nickel development company, announces that it has
agreed a US$20 million interim funding package (the "Funding
Package") which comprises a US$15 million Senior Secured Loan
Facility (the "Facility"), and the release of US$5 million by OMF
Fund III (Cr) Ltd. previously secured at Vermelho, that will allow
for critical construction streams to advance at its flagship
Araguaia Nickel Project ("Araguaia" or "the Project") and for
general working capital purposes.
Interim CEO Karim Nasr commented, "We are pleased to see the
continued support from our cornerstone shareholders through this
US$20 million funding package. This funding package is a
demonstration from the Company's largest shareholders on their
commitment towards finding a solution to complete the Araguaia
Nickel Project construction. We are actively engaging with our
cornerstone shareholders and senior lenders with the goal of
unlocking a funding solution in Q2 2024. We wish to thank our
cornerstones, local stakeholders and employees for their continued
commitment and support."
The Facility has been provided by OMF Fund III (F) Ltd. ("Orion
Mine Finance"), La Mancha Investments S.à r.l. ("La Mancha") and
Glencore International AG ("Glencore") (together the "New Money
Lenders"), who have each committed US$5 million to the Facility.
The New Money Lenders will rank pari passu with the Senior Lenders
and will benefit from the same security package. The Facility will
have a maturity date falling 102 months from 7 December 2022 and
will bear interest at 15.00% per annum.
Furthermore, the existing Senior Lenders have agreed to waivers
that include deferral of interest due at 31(st) December 2023 to
the end of February 2024 in addition to any breaches or Events of
Default under the Senior Debt Facilities.
The Funding Package constitutes a related party transaction
under Rule 13 of the AIM Rules for Companies. As such, the
Company's independent directors (excluding those connected to La
Mancha and their nominees) consider, having consulted with its
nominated adviser Peel Hunt LLP, that the terms of the Funding
Package are fair and reasonable insofar as its shareholders are
concerned.
Further to the above, OMF Fund III (Cr) Ltd. has demonstrated
its further support to the Project through the release of an
additional US$5 million currently secured at Vermelho, Horizonte's
second 100% owned project in Brazil. Following the closing of the
funding package, US$11 million will remain segregated for the
development of Vermelho, where on-going studies continue to
advance.
The Funding Package provides the Company with liquidity to
advance the required re-estimation work at Araguaia, necessary to
implement a full funding solution. It will also allow two critical
workstreams to be completed, the Water Storage Reservoir and the
230kV powerline, while maintaining a strong focus on safety.
As previously announced, the Company's cornerstone shareholders
and senior lenders are continuing to undertake their respective due
diligence as part of a full funding solution, which includes
working with the Company and consultants who are undertaking a
review of the outstanding Project capital expenditure and schedule.
It is expected that this due diligence process and review will be
finalised in Q1 2024, with a full funding solution targeted for Q2
2024.
While the Funding Package will allow near term work at Araguaia
to progress, completion of construction activities at Araguaia will
be subject to successful completion of a full financing solution in
2024. There can be no certainty at this stage that the full
financing solution will be achieved.
Figure 1 - An overview of the Araguaia processing site as at the
beginning of December 2023.
Figure 2 - A view from above the Homogenisation building looking
towards the primary and secondary crushers, the ROM pad and
stockpiles.
Figure 3 - A view of the steel erection of the Electrostatic
Precipitator, the Rotary Kiln, the Electric Arc Furnace and the
Refinery.
This announcement contains inside information for the purposes
of Article 7 of EU Regulation 596/2014, as retained in the UK
pursuant to the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018.
For further information, visit www.horizonteminerals.com or
contact:
Horizonte Minerals plc info@horizonteminerals.com
Patrick Chambers (Head of IR) +44 (0) 203 356 2901
Peel Hunt LLP (Nominated Adviser & Joint
Broker)
Ross Allister
Richard Crichton
David McKeown
Bhavesh Patel +44 (0)20 7418 8900
---------------------------
BMO (Joint Broker)
Thomas Rider
Pascal Lussier Duquette
Andrew Cameron +44 (0) 20 7236 1010
---------------------------
Barclays (Joint Broker)
Philip Lindop
Richard Bassingthwaighte +44 (0)20 7623 2323
---------------------------
Tavistock (Financial PR)
Jos Simson
Cath Drummond +44 (0) 20 7920 3150
---------------------------
ABOUT HORIZONTE MINERALS
Horizonte Minerals Plc (AIM/TSX: HZM) is developing two
100%-owned, Tier 1 projects in Pará state, Brazil - the Araguaia
Nickel Project and the Vermelho Nickel-Cobalt Project. Both
projects are high-grade, low-cost, with low carbon emission
intensities and are scalable. Araguaia is under construction and
when fully ramped up with both Line 1 and Line 2, is forecast to
produce 29,000 tonnes of nickel per year. Vermelho is at
feasibility study stage. Horizonte's combined production profile of
over 60,000 tonnes of nickel per year positions the Company as a
globally significant nickel producer. Horizonte's top three
shareholders are La Mancha Investments S.à r.l., Glencore Plc and
Orion Mine Finance.
CAUTIONARY STATEMENT REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION
Except for statements of historical fact relating to the
Company, certain information contained in this press release
constitutes "forward-looking information" under Canadian securities
legislation. Forward-looking information includes, but is not
limited to, the ability of the Company to complete any planned
acquisition of equipment, statements with respect to the potential
of the Company's current or future property mineral projects; the
ability of the Company to complete a positive feasibility study
regarding the second RKEF line at Araguaia on time, or at all, the
ability of the Company to complete a positive feasibility study
regarding the Vermelho Project on time, or at all, the success of
exploration and mining activities; cost and timing of future
exploration, production and development; the costs and timing for
delivery of the equipment to be purchased, the estimation of
mineral resources and reserves and the ability of the Company to
achieve its goals in respect of growing its mineral resources; the
realization of mineral resource and reserve estimates and achieving
production in accordance with the Company's potential production
profile or at all. Generally, forward-looking information can be
identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as
"plans", "expects" or "does not expect", "is expected", "budget",
"scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates" or
"does not anticipate", or "believes", or variations of such words
and phrases or statements that certain actions, events or results
"may", "could", "would", "might" or "will be taken", "occur" or "be
achieved". Forward-looking information is based on the reasonable
assumptions, estimates, analysis and opinions of management made in
light of its experience and its perception of trends, current
conditions and expected developments, as well as other factors that
management believes to be relevant and reasonable in the
circumstances at the date that such statements are made, and are
inherently subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and
other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity,
performance or achievements of the Company to be materially
different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking
information, including but not limited to risks related to: the
inability of the Company to complete any planned acquisition of
equipment on time or at all, the ability of the Company to complete
a positive feasibility study regarding the implementation of a
second RKEF line at Araguaia on the timeline contemplated or at
all, the ability of the Company to complete a positive feasibility
study regarding the Vermelho Project on the timeline contemplated
or at all, exploration and mining risks, competition from
competitors with greater capital; the Company's lack of experience
with respect to development-stage mining operations; fluctuations
in metal prices; uninsured risks; environmental and other
regulatory requirements; exploration, mining and other licences;
the Company's future payment obligations; potential disputes with
respect to the Company's title to, and the area of, its mining
concessions; the Company's dependence on its ability to obtain
sufficient financing in the future; the Company's dependence on its
relationships with third parties; the Company's joint ventures; the
potential of currency fluctuations and political
or economic instability in countries in which the Company
operates; currency exchange fluctuations; the Company's ability to
manage its growth effectively; the trading market for the ordinary
shares of the Company; uncertainty with respect to the Company's
plans to continue to develop its operations and new projects; the
Company's dependence on key personnel; possible conflicts of
interest of directors and officers of the Company, and various
risks associated with the legal and regulatory framework within
which the Company operates, together with the risks identified and
disclosed in the Company's disclosure record available on the
Company's profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com, including without
limitation, the annual information form of the Company for the year
ended December 31, 2022, and the Araguaia and Vermelho Technical
Reports available on the Company's website
https://horizonteminerals.com/. Although management of the Company
has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual
results to differ materially from those contained in
forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause
results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can
be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, as
actual results and future events could differ materially from those
anticipated in such statements.
This information is provided by RNS, the news service of the
London Stock Exchange. RNS is approved by the Financial Conduct
Authority to act as a Primary Information Provider in the United
Kingdom. Terms and conditions relating to the use and distribution
of this information may apply. For further information, please
contact rns@lseg.com or visit www.rns.com.
RNS may use your IP address to confirm compliance with the terms
and conditions, to analyse how you engage with the information
contained in this communication, and to share such analysis on an
anonymised basis with others as part of our commercial services.
For further information about how RNS and the London Stock Exchange
use the personal data you provide us, please see our Privacy
Policy.
END
MSCZQLFLXLLXFBX
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
December 27, 2023 02:00 ET (07:00 GMT)
Grafico Azioni Horizonte Minerals (LSE:HZM)
Storico
Da Ott 2024 a Nov 2024
Grafico Azioni Horizonte Minerals (LSE:HZM)
Storico
Da Nov 2023 a Nov 2024
