Ilala Metals Ltd is set to become the newest copper and uranium explorer on the ASX, having opened an initial public offering (IPO) to raise $5 million in additional funding, with capacity for up to $8 million should the IPO be oversubscribed.
The company plans to list under code IL1, with the IPO scheduled to end in late August.
This fresh capital will support exploration and drilling at its Botswanan assets, specifically the Serule Uranium Project and Central Copper Project (CCP) in the Kalahari Copper Belt.
“We are delighted that our IPO to raise a minimum of $5 million has now opened,” Ilala Metals chair Dr Eric Lilford said.
“The Serule Project, whilst in early stages, has huge potential, being probably the most sought-after uranium project in Botswana now.”
Heating copper and uranium markets
The price of uranium has risen 190% since January 2020, reaching its highest point since 2007 in February this year at US$81.32 per pound.
Copper has also risen 43% since the beginning of 2020, reaching an all-time high of US$5.20 per pound in May.
“It [Serule] is next door to Letlhakane and there is plenty of evidence the paleochannel mineralisation extends into our licence,” Lilford continued.
“We are also excited about the prospect of discovery at our Central Copper Project, which is in an exciting copper-rich region of Botswana.
“CCP has 28 kilometres of the prospective contact within it and is on a ‘copper corridor’ which hosts the largest and highest-grade deposits of the Kalahari Copper Belt.
“With uranium prices on the rise and growing global demand for copper, this juncture offers a compelling opportunity to invest in a dual-focused exploration and development company we are building at Ilala Metals.”
Projects with “huge” potential
The Serule Project neighbours Lotus Resources Ltd’s Letlhakane deposit, which is host to a 118-million-pound uranium resource.
Ilala recently completed eight reverse circulation (RC) holes at the uranium asset, the results from which will be released post-IPO.
Central Copper Project also offers near-term exploration opportunities, with an expanded ground magnetic survey in May identifying several promising structural targets.
The CCP sits just 10 kilometres from the Khoemacau Zone 9 discovery – recently acquired by MMG Limited for US$1.9 billion – within the same corridor that hosts the Zone 9 deposits totalling 166 million tonnes at 1.9% copper.
Ilala is confident it has the expertise needed to pursue its exploration goals, with 30 years of technical, financial and academic expertise in the resources industry from Dr Lilford as chair.
The board is rounded out by highly experienced mining and exploration executives - Richard Henning as managing director, and Dr Quinton Hills and Brendan Cummins (NYSE:CMI) as technical directors.