Marindi raises $3.2m for lithium exploration

Lithium exploration at Forrestania, north of Ravensthorpe, will be a priority for Marindi Metals after the company completed a capital raising worth nearly $3.2 million.

That puts Marindi’s cash reserves at nearly $4.8 million.

The raising was conducted through an option with a 2 cent strike price; nearly 60 million options were exercised.

A further 100 million options had been underwritten by Argonaut Securities.

Marindi also indicated it would be pumping money into base metals exploration at tenements in Western Australia and the Northern Territory.

Lithium has garnered significant interest from investors in the past couple of years thanks to a large projected increase in demand for the commodity, which is used in batteries.

West Perth-based Neometals is one player already active in the sector, having taken the Mt Marion lithium project to commissioning, while production was restarted at the previously mothballed Mt Cattlin mine by Galaxy Resources.

Marindi managing director Joe Treacy said shareholders had made a vote of confidence in the company.

‘‘Our strong financial position enables us to accelerate exploration at Forrestania and across our highly prospective base metal projects,” he said.

In December, the company filed a statement of claim in the Supreme Court against Rox Resources over the company’s interest in the Reward joint venture.

Shares in Marindi were 9.5 per cent higher at the close, at 2.3 cents each.