Australian mining company Kopore Metals has agreed to sell 75pc of its copper subsidiary Alvis-Crest to ARC Minerals in an all-equity deal worth £1.2mn ($16mn). The sale will fund ongoing exploration at Alvis-Crest’s Virgo copper project in Botswana.
ARC has agreed to spend $200,000 annually on exploring the Virgo copper project, the company said in a filing on Mar 24. The British miner also has the option to buy out Alvis-Crest completely with an additional $5mn.
Simon Jackson, Kopore’s managing director noted that ARC Minerals is better equipped to take over the Virgo project’s exploration since it already has the necessary workforce and infrastructure in Southern Africa. He reiterated that the COVID-19 pandemic has restricted people and asset movement regionally and internationally.
Kopore plans to focus its resources on other copper projects in Ghanzi West, Botswana, and Horseshoe West, in Western Australia.
The larger Botswana copper deposit including Virgo and Ghanzi West is forecasted to have an annual copper production capacity of 30,000mt.