SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA: Alligator Energy Limited has announced a strategic investment in EnviroCopper Ltd, a company that is developing environmentally friendly copper extraction methods using In-Situ Recovery (ISR).
Alligator will initially invest A$0.9m for 7.8% of EnviroCopper, with the option to increase its stake to 50.1% through further investments.
EnviroCopper is currently conducting ISR trials at its Kapunda and Alford West copper projects in South Australia, with the support of BHP Ltd and a Commonwealth Govt grant. ISR is a technique that uses a liquid solution to dissolve and recover copper from underground ore bodies, without the need for mining, crushing or leaching. ISR has been proven to be economical and sustainable in several projects in Australia and the US.
Alligator will form a technical advisory committee with EnviroCopper to assist with the ISR trial work and to jointly apply any intellectual property that is developed. The South Australian Government has set a target of producing 1Mtpa of copper per annum, which creates a favourable environment for ISR copper projects.
Thor Energy Plc, a shareholder of EnviroCopper, will see its 30% equity interest diluted to 26.5% as a result of Alligator’s investment and a separate agreement by EnviroCopper with Andromeda Metals Ltd. Thor’s directors have welcomed Alligator’s involvement and expressed confidence in EnviroCopper’s potential.
Nicole Galloway Warland, Managing Director of Thor Energy, commented: “The A$0.9m investment by Alligator Energy into ECL justifies the decision made by Thor in its early investment of A$1.0m in return for the initial 30% equity stake Thor had in ECL.
Thor has every confidence that Alligator will not only provide ECL with the financial resources to advance the Alford West copper ISR project, but also provide some key technical support during the resource definition and approvals process.
“Thor is looking forward to working in partnership with Alligator Energy in developing the Alford West Copper ISR Project, as well as investigating other potential copper ISR projects in Australia. We look forward to updating the market and our shareholders with further developments.”
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