Operational highlights

• Independent Mineral Resource Estimate (EMR) published on the Diba gold project, western Mali, comprising 4,834,000 t at 1.39 g / t gold (Au) for 217,000 oz in the indicated category and 5,479,000 t at 1.06 g / t Au for 187,000 oz in the inferred category.
• Excellent results obtained from metallurgical test work on oxide and sulphide samples at Diba, testing the sensitivity of ores to carbon leach treatment (CIL) and heap leaching.
• Updated Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) released for the Diba project, with a 32% increase in after-tax net present value (NPV) to US $ 107 million based on a discount rate of 10% and the gold price of US $ 1,500 / oz.
• Results of an MRE announced for the Tabakorole gold project, southern Mali, comprising 1.2 g / t Au for 620,000 oz in the indicated category, 1.2 g / t Au for 290,000 oz in the inferred category, carried out in the Part of the company’s (JV) joint venture with Marvel Gold Limited (formerly Graphex Mining Limited), listed on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX).
• Encouraging results from drilling 70 holes at 2042m of shallow aerodynamic drilling at Tabakorole, defining a 200m extension to the northwest of the mineralization.
• Environmental impact assessment of the Agdz silver and copper project, eastern Morocco, accepted by the Ministry of the Interior, and new targets generated on the project using predictive mapping techniques

Company highlights

• Final purchase and sale agreements and rRoyalty signed with Stellar AfricaGold Inc., listed on the TSX Venture Exchange (TSX-V), in respect of the Company’s 100% interest in the Prikro and Zenoula gold projects in Côte d’Ivoire for 2.5 million Stellar shares, warrants to purchase an additional 2.5 million Stellar shares, milestone payments and a 2.5% royalty on the net smelter return (NSR) on each project.
• Grant of stock options to certain directors and employees to acquire 5.1 million ordinary shares with a par value of £ 0.05 (ordinary shares) at an exercise price of £ 0.7315 per ordinary share, i.e. a 10% premium over the closing market price on the grant date.
• Appointment to the Board of Directors of Altus of Karim Nasr, CEO of La Mancha Holdings S.à rl, as its representative.
• Appointment of Alister Hume as Director of Business Development, Sandra Bates as General Counsel and Richard Belcher as VP Exploration.
• The company’s common shares began listing on the OTCQX “Best Market” in the United States under the ticker symbol “ALTUF”, thereby improving the visibility of the company among potential US investors.

Financial highlights

• Conclusion of a strategic investment agreement with La Mancha, which results in a La Mancha investment of 6.5 million pounds sterling / 11.2 million Canadian dollars and La Mancha holding a 35.45% stake in the society.
• Consolidation of the company’s common stock on a five-to-one basis.
• 15 million initial shares valued at £ 1.1million / C $ 1.9million in Canyon Resources Ltd listed on ASX, received pursuant to the joint venture termination agreement on the bauxite project Birsok in central Cameroon.
• Cash balance of £ 5.9 million / C $ 10.3 million as of December 31, 2020.
• Cash outflow for operating activities of £ 2.3 million / CAN $ 4.1 million for the year.
• Balance of listed holdings of £ 1.3 million / C $ 2.3 million as of December 31, 2020.

End of period

• Completion of an oversubscribed fundraiser for £ 7.7million / CAN $ 13.35million at an issue price of £ 0.75 / CAN $ 1.30 per share, with the net proceeds to be primarily used to accelerate gold exploration programs in Egypt and Mali.
• Expansion of activities in Egypt with the award of four gold exploration licenses totaling 1,565 km² located in the Eastern Desert through a competitive international tendering process.
• Award of three new copper and silver exploration projects totaling 252 km² in the prospective belt of the Western Anti-Atlas of Morocco.
• Receipt of the second tranche of 10 million Canyon shares valued at £ 0.6 million / C $ 1.1 million.
• Completion of the strategic review of the Bikoula iron project in southern Cameroon by Mining Plus UK Ltd to determine the next stages of development.
• Drilling at the Tabakorole gold project, extending the lateral strike length from 150 m to more than 3 km.

Steven Poulton, Managing Director of Altus, said: “2020 has been a year of excellent progress across the company, despite the difficult context the pandemic has presented.

“During the period, we were delighted to announce the closing of a strategic £ 6.5million investment by La Mancha, one of the industry’s most respected investment groups. La Mancha acquired a 35% stake and provided us with the capital necessary to accelerate our royalty generation activities. We now also benefit from the business expertise of Karim Nasr, CEO of La Mancha, whom we welcomed to the Altus Board of Directors. Following this investment and in line with our growth trajectory, we were pleased to announce the appointments of Sandra Bates as General Counsel, Alister Hume as Business Development Manager and Richard Belcher as VP Exploration. These high caliber individuals enhance the strength of the Altus team and its capabilities.

“In keeping with our diversified strategy, Altus successfully completed a number of royalty projects and transactions during the period that generated value for our shareholders. Operationally, our ASX-listed JV partner, Marvel Gold, has undertaken a series of drilling and other programs on the Lakanfla and Tabakorole projects in western and southern Mali which have generated very positive results. Also in Mali, we accelerated the exploration of our 100% owned Diba gold project in western Mali, by drilling and generating a new larger resource, followed by a very convincing PEA. Elsewhere, we continued our project generation activities in Cameroon, Morocco and Ethiopia, mainly by exploring gold, copper and silver deposits.

“After the period, we announced that the company’s shares had started trading on the OTCQX market in the United States, providing the company with increased exposure to current and potential investors and counterparties for project transactions. We also marked our entry into Egypt, with the award of several gold exploration licenses in the eastern desert to our subsidiary Akh Gold. In March 2021, the company completed a private placement, raising £ 7.7million before expenses. The placement strengthened our balance sheet, allowing us to further accelerate our current programs, particularly in Egypt and Mali, as well as to provide capital for possible accretion and royalty acquisition opportunities.

“The coming year should be even stronger and more exciting for Altus than 2020 as we look forward to generating new discoveries, increasing the number of projects and royalties in our portfolio, launching new joint ventures and identifying and executing project and royalty transactions offer significant potential for creating considerable value for our shareholders. “

Read the article online at: https://www.globalminingreview.com/finance-business/28042021/altus-strategies-announce-audited-final-results/