Ariana Resources plc, an AIM-listed exploration and development company operating in Europe, has announced the launch of its wholly-owned Asgard Metals Fund (the fund), which is being developed as part of Ariana's proprietary Project Catalyst Strategy. The fund will be focused on investments in discovery-stage mineral exploration companies following defined exploration and development work programmes on specific projects.
Highlights
- Asgard Metals Pty. Ltd., the wholly-owned Australian subsidiary of Ariana, intends to invest an initial AUS$2 million, primarily into listed exploration companies with projects that meet its rigorous selection criteria.
- Investments will be focused on potentially high-value discovery-stage opportunities, which show early development potential.
- Projects may be located anywhere across the Eastern Hemisphere and within easy reach of Ariana's operational hubs in Australia, Turkey and the UK.
- Exploration projects will be selected on the basis of merit, taking into account geological prospectivity, exploration upside, jurisdiction and delivery capability of the project owner.
- Selected projects will receive an initial investment of up to approximately AUS$500 000 in capital and will receive expert assistance from the Ariana team.
- Participating companies will have the opportunity of working with Ariana's first-class exploration team, which has demonstrated its success across multiple jurisdictions.
- Investments are designed to be timed optimally for maximum value accretion over a near-term investment horizon.
Dr Kerim Sener, Managing Director, commented: "We are launching the discovery fund in order to support the early-stage exploration of high-quality exploration opportunities, which show the potential for value creation over the near-term. This launch is in line with our long-term ambition to represent the cutting-edge of the mineral exploration and development sector internationally. It builds on our earlier and highly successful strategy of making early-stage exploration investments in gold and lithium assets across several non-European jurisdictions, which now provides the financial basis of the fund. The strategy is also fundamentally rooted in our lengthy and successful experience operating within Turkey; recognising the value in collaborative local partnerships and not being averse to holding minority interests in good projects, led by great teams.
"We bring access to a highly capable and fully self-sufficient exploration team, able to deploy rapidly a full spectrum of geoscientific capabilities to unlock nascent value. The cash generative capacity of our joint venture operations gives us the means to take enhanced positions in worthwhile project opportunities, as we are doing separately in Cyprus and Kosovo. Following several years of significant under-investment across the junior exploration sector, we are taking a major-company approach to the funding and development of exploration projects to the benefit of our project partners, and ultimately, our shareholders."