26/06/2023

First Class Metals (FCM), the UK metals exploration company, provided details on an oversubscribed conditional placing and subscription to raise £997,400 at 10p. The company said the swiftness and enthusiasm with which this placing was undertaken robustly supports the Company’s exploration policy and the success demonstrated so far in its exploration strategy. These funds will allow significant advancement of two of the prospects on two of our key Properties as well as allow it to progress to drill ready on the lithium focus and other exploration areas of merit.

Comment: This is a decent result for FCM in current stock market conditions – a significant raise, at a good price. Indeed, with this out of the way one would expect the stock to resume its upward trajectory towards 15p, as the company delivers on its exploration strategy, especially over the summer.

DeepVerge (DVRG) announced an update regarding the potential sale of one or more of its business units, and the financial position of DeepVerge, and announces that trading of the company’s shares on AIM will be temporarily suspended from 7.30 a.m. today, pending clarification of the company’s financial position.

Comment: Just last week I was asked what I thought was the outlook for DVRG. My answer was that recent months have revealed a rabbit hole of issues, and the closer one looks, and the more that is revealed, the worse the position appears.

Oracle Power (ORCP), a developer of energy projects, announced a strategic MOU with the Global Green Growth Institute, an international organisation headquartered in Seoul, the Republic of Korea, to provide a general framework for cooperation and collaboration between the two Parties in support of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and Paris Climate Agreement. ORCP said the signing of the MOU with GGGI is a fantastic endorsement for Oracle as a green energy project developer, providing it with a platform for collaboration and engagement with global stakeholders.

Comment: The pace of deal making at ORCP is certainly accelerating. At some point soon the company should be able to monetize the accelerated action, something which is not factored in as far as the market cap of the group currently.

Wildcat (WCAT) said it has entered into a MOU with a third party that has expressed an interest to carry out due diligence on deals that Wildcat can source from Sudan. This third party will then decide whether or not to invest directly into a deal up to an amount of $25 million. The party is also prepared to invest, following due diligence into other petroleum projects in other African countries which have been sourced by Wildcat. The MOU is not legally binding, can be terminated with 30 days notice and the investors are under no obligation to invest and the company is under no obligation to take their investment.

Comment: WCAT has been looking for a decent investment partner to roll out its strategy. It would appear that the third party here has the cash and the inclination to partner with the company, and ideally take advantage of current volatility in Africa to pick up a decent deal.

Equipmake (EQIP), the UK-based engineering specialist, announced that further to its announcement on 21 April 2023 where it agreed a technology partnership with H55, a leading electric aerospace propulsion company, the company has now formally agreed a term sheet with H55 for the provision of an aerospace electric motor. The company said it was delighted to build on its initial partnership with H55, to partner for production on its lightweight, power dense electric motors, developing certified electric propulsion systems for the BRM Aero project. These will be utilised in a highly advanced electric two-seater training aircraft.

Comment: Equipmake continues to prove why and how it is one of the few winning Aquis listings of the recent past, something which is certainly quite an achievement in current stock market conditions. Being involved in a proper, significant, nuts and bolts business clearly helps.

Vinanz (AQSE: BTC), the London listed Bitcoin mining company, announced that the 100 new Bitmain Antminer S19J Pro (104 TH/s) ASIC miners are now fully operational in Labrador Canada running at a combined processing power of 10.4 Petahash/s. The company said that with Bitcoin really hotting up in the mainstream global news channels again, it was very pleased to announce that Vinanz now has its first new 100 Bitcoin Mining Cluster up and spinning in Canada with a combined processing power of 10.4 PH, which is exactly what the company asked for performance wise.

Comment: Given the recent push for Bitcoin back over the $30,000 mark, and Binance managing to see off the US authorities, it could be argued that Vinanz should be on the front foot. This is especially the case with its 10.4 PH.

Greatland Gold (GGP) announced the commencement of its maiden drilling campaign at the Paterson South Project which is under a farm-in and joint venture arrangement with Rio Tinto Exploration. Exploration drilling has begun at the Stingray target on the Budjidowns tenement which is located north of Greatland’s world class Havieron gold-copper project. GGP said it was delighted to immediately commence its maiden drilling campaign at the Paterson South Project. The rapid commencement of drilling following entry into the farm-in and joint venture arrangement with Rio Tinto Exploration is testament to both the high quality of the targets and Greatland’s drive to rapidly unlock greater value from our Paterson Province exploration portfolio.

Comment: GGP makes a decent operational move to drive value from its Paterson Province exploration portfolio. However, for most fans of the company, it is driving the share price which is key, and what the company will do to deliver on this.

Andrada Mining (ATM), the African technology metals mining company, provided the unaudited operational update for the company for its first quarter for the period ended 31 May 2023. The company said the milestones achieved during the quarter have laid the necessary foundation for the accelerated growth it expect for the balance of the financial year. It has demonstrated the ability to produce saleable lithium concentrate. The completion of its on-site bulk-sampling plant remains on track for completion this month and will expedite the metallurgical testwork required to bring lithium revenues onstream.

Comment: Andrada in 2023 has turned the corner as far as its share price, and operationally, as it has underlined in the latest update regarding milestones achieved. Getting lithium revenues onstream, and the run up to this, should deliver an easy double figure share price as the summer progresses.

Premier African Minerals (PREM) provided a further update on the progress of the revision of the Offtake and Prepayment Agreement entered into between Premier and Canmax Technologies Co., Ltd.  as announced on 6 June 2023 for spodumene concentrate produced at Zulu Lithium and Tantalum Project. The company said the issues at Zulu have been acknowledged by the plant contractor to be beyond the control of Premier, and could not have been foreseen by Premier. It will diligently strive to resolve the issues with Canmax and will actively pursue alternative strategies.

Comment: PREM shares have gone into roller coaster mode in the recent past, although hopefully the latest announcement from the company will draw a line under recent issues. If this is the case we could see the stock provide an opportunity from any dip seen initially today.

Bens Creek Group (BEN), the owner of a metallurgical coal mine in North America supplying the steel industry, announces that HWM 81 has been temporarily withdrawn from service pending completion of repairs and re-establishment of the necessary benching following a mining incident earlier in the month. On 23 June 2023 Bens Creek Operations entered into an unsecured loan note agreement with the Lender for a total subscription of $6,500,000 in Loan Notes. The company said while it was disappointed about the incident, it was pleased that no injuries occurred. Its new shareholder, Avani, has quickly evidenced their commitment to the business by putting in place this term loan to ensure that its working capital is maintained during this extended period of pressure on coal prices.

Comment: Bad luck, and low coal prices, mean more money is needed to tide BEN over. While this may be all in good order, it will be tough for the stock price to deliver a sorely needed recovery in the near term. Ideally, production rebounds quickly.

Zephyr Energy (ZPHR), the Rocky Mountain oil and gas company, announced its audited results for the year ended 31 December 2022. The company said Zephyr continues to be well positioned as a profitable, cash generating exploration and production group and its balanced portfolio of operated and non-operated assets is expected to continue to yield strong results for Zephyr.  Cash flows generated from its non-operated portfolio will continue to be primarily used for the ongoing development of its flagship Paradox project.

Comment: One would be assuming / hoping the recent share price dip below 3.5p is the lowest the share price of ZPHR will go near term. Much of this assumption will depend on whether the company is done with raising cash for its flagship Paradox project.

LifeSafe (LIFS) said that at its  AGM which is being held later this morning, Dominic Berger, Chairman, will make the following statement: “Continuing the strong momentum announced in the Group’s previous Trading Updates this year, I am pleased to report that sales growth has continued to exceed the Board’s expectations in 2023 with revenue in the first five months to 31 May 2023 of approximately £2.5 million, significantly higher than both the same period last year and internal budgets for 2023.”

Comment: LifeSafe continues to be underappreciated by the market, both in terms of the utility of its fire safety offering, but also in terms of how well the sales are going, particularly in the USA.

Ananda’s (AQSE: ANA), which will be a provider of high-quality cannabinoid-based medicines for the treatment of complex, chronic inflammatory pain conditions, announced an operational update. The company said the NHS spends £5 billion each year attempting to treat complex, chronic inflammatory pain conditions. If it can solve even a small portion of that problem with ANA’s patent pending cannabidiol-based medicines, it will be doing very good work for both patients and  shareholders. It is optimistic on both fronts.

Comment: ANA has certainly come of age in 2023, and continues to drive its strategy at pace. The corollary here is that there will be a direct relationship between how much the NHS saves on pain conditions, and how much this benefits ANA shareholders.