West Perth-based explorer Forte Energy, formerly Murchison United, plans to raise $10 million through institutional investors to advance its uranium projects in West Africa.
West Perth-based explorer Forte Energy, formerly Murchison United, plans to raise $10 million through institutional investors to advance its uranium projects in West Africa.
The shares, priced at a discounted 10 cents each, will be made to clients of Blackwood Capital and Sydney-based StoneBridge Group, formerly Tricom Holdings.
The company has also engaged Coffey Mining to prepare an initial resource estimate for its Firawa uranium project in the Republic of Guinea.
The announcement is below:
International uranium company Forte Energy NL ("Forte Energy" or "The Company") (ASX: FTE, AIM: FTE) is pleased to advise that it has reached in-principle agreements with Blackwood Capital and StoneBridge Group to raise A$10 million through the issue of 100 million ordinary shares at an issue price of 10 cents per share to sophisticated institutional clients, from North America, the United Kingdom and Australia.
The funds raised through the placement will primarily be used by Forte Energy to progress its high quality portfolio of West African uranium projects, including:
- resource drilling programmes and pre-feasibility studies at the Company's Bir En Nar uranium prospect in Mauritania;
- further exploration and pre-feasibility studies at the Firawa Uranium Project in Guinea, for which an initial JORC Code-compliant resource statement is expected to be announced shortly;
- further exploration and drilling programmes targeting several prospective uranium anomalies identified within the Company's other Exploration Licences near Bir Moghrein, in Mauritania and in Guinea; and
- ongoing investigation and targeting of other resource opportunities in Australia and internationally.
The share issue is being undertaken in two tranches. The first tranche, comprising 66,698,704 shares at A$0.10 per share, will be placed pursuant to the Company's 15% placement authority and is to be issued within 7 days. The second tranche, of 33,301,296 shares at A$0.10 per share, is to be placed subject to Shareholder approval at a general meeting of Shareholders. In this regard, a Notice of Meeting (NOM) will be forwarded to Shareholders shortly.
Application will also be made to the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange ('AIM') for admission to trading of these ordinary shares.
Commenting on the strong level of support for the placement, Mark Reilly, Managing Director of Forte Energy, said: "In the current difficult financial climate, we are delighted to have secured a strong financial platform from which the Company can aggressively progress its existing projects and its ongoing appraisal of new projects."
In a separate announcement released today, the Company advised that it has engaged leading mining consultants Coffey Mining to prepare an initial JORC Code-compliant resource estimate for the Firawa Uranium Project. The maiden Resource is expected to be announced within four weeks.
