Mining exploration company QMines has announced the 100 per cent acquisition of Zenith Minerals’s Develin Creek Copper-Zinc project, located 90km west of the company’s existing flagship Mt Chalmers Copper and Gold Project in Queensland.
A legally binding agreement has been executed between the two companies, in which QMines will acquire a 100 per cent interest for up to $4.5 million in both cash and shares, along with additional work commitments.
As set out in the agreement, within the first twelve months of the acquisition QMines must complete 500m of diamond drilling and a detailed metallurgical study on the existing Develin Creek Inferred Mineral Resource.
Other consideration details of the acquisition include an initial and upfront payment of $1.2 million in cash and $1 million worth of QMines shares made to Zenith for a 51 per cent interest in the project. At the end of the twelve months, QMines will make a further payment of $1.3 million in cash and issue another $1 million worth of shares to Zenith Minerals for an additional 49 per cent interest in the project.
The funds received from this divestment will be allocated to advancing Zenith’s lithium and gold project portfolio and for working capital purposes.
QMines’s Managing Director, Andrew Sparke, said that the acquisition is helping progress the Mt Chalmers project.
“Since listing in only May 2021, the QMines team has rapidly grown its copper resources at the Mt Chalmers project. We always believed that the Develin Creek asset was very complementary and would provide the scale required to progress the Mt Chalmers project towards sustainable copper production.
“We wish to thank the Zenith Board for sharing our vision of a larger, combined copper business and for their patience and assistance with the transaction. We would like to welcome Zenith and their shareholders to the register as large owners in our company. “We look forward to working closely with you as we test several exciting exploration targets and prepare the company for potential future production”.
Zenith Minerals’s Executive Chair, David Ledger, said that the company is pleased with the divestment and that the sale provides immediate cash and allows the focus shift to its lithium assets.
“This has been a deliberate reallocation of our resources where we believe we can maximise value for our shareholders. We will continue to review the asset base and monetise projects at the appropriate times.”
