White Rock Announces A$7.35 Million Equity Raise to Accelerate Exploration at its Last Chance Gold Prospect, Coupled With a Share Consolidation
White Rock Minerals (ASX: WRM) has announced a proposed equity raising to raise a total of up to approximately A$7.35 million before cost through a two-tranche placement and a fully underwritten Share Purchase Plan (SPP), as well as a proposed consolidation of its issued capital through the conversion of every 100 existing shares into one share, subject to shareholder approval.
HIGHLIGHTS:
- White Rock announces an equity raising of approximately A$7.35 million (before costs) through a two tranche Placement and a fully underwritten Share Purchase Plan (SPP).
- Offer price of A$0.003 (0.3 cents) per share representing a 25% discount to the 15-day and 1-month volume weighted average price (VWAP) of White Rock shares.
- There is notable participation from significant international institutional and sophisticated investors including a strategic syndicate led by Palisades Goldcorp.
- The funds from this raising are to be used to explore and drill test the Company’s large and robust Last Chance gold anomaly located at the Red Mountain project in the Tintina Gold belt of central Alaska.
- White Rock also announces a Share Consolidation.
White Rock Minerals Ltd (ASX: WRM) (White Rock) is pleased to announce a proposed equity raising (Equity Raising) to raise a total of up to approximately A$7.35 million before costs, comprising:
- a two-tranche placement under which White Rock has successfully received commitments to issue 1,950,000,000 fully paid ordinary shares to various institutional and sophisticated investors (including a syndicate of strategic investors led by Palisades Goldcorp Ltd) at an issue price of $0.003 per share to raise approximately A$5.85 million as follows:
- a first tranche of 470,407,384 shares to raise approximately A$1.41 million; and
- a second tranche of 1,479,592,616 shares to raise approximately A$4.44 million that is subject to shareholder approval; and
- a share purchase plan (which is fully underwritten, subject to shareholder approval as described below) under which existing holders of White Rock fully paid ordinary shares will have the opportunity to acquire new fully paid ordinary shares at an issue price of $0.003 per share to raise up to A$1.5 million.
White Rock is also pleased to announce a proposed consolidation (Consolidation) of its issued capital through the conversion of every one hundred (100) existing shares into one (1) share, subject to shareholder approval. The Consolidation will also apply to all options on issue.
The issue price under the Equity Raising represents a 25% discount to the volume weighted average price of White Rock shares during the 15 trading days immediately prior to the date of this announcement.
The funds raised from the Equity Raising will be applied towards White Rock’s exploration program at its Red Mountain project in Alaska, in particular in relation to exploration activities at the recently discovered large and robust Last Chance gold stream sediment anomaly and for working capital purposes.
Canaccord Genuity (Australia) Limited (Canaccord Genuity) is acting as Lead Manager to the Equity Raising and Martin Place Securities Pty Ltd (Martin Place Securities) is acting as Co-Manager to the Equity Raising. Canaccord Genuity is also acting as underwriter to the SPP (subject to shareholder approval as described below).
White Rock’s MD & CEO Matt Gill said: “The level of interest shown in this capital raising has been tremendous. It will allow White Rock to immediately recommence on-ground works in mid-June to explore and then drill the robust 15km2 Last Chance gold anomaly located in the Tintina Gold belt of Central Alaska. Large, quality exploration targets in a gold belt that already hosts the likes of Donlin Creek (45 Moz Au), Pogo (10 Moz Au), and Fort Knox (13.5 Moz Au), do not present themselves often and White Rock looks forward to drilling and potentially delineating a world- class deposit at Last Chance.
“We have attracted some serious interest in the Last Chance exploration story and this funding will allow us to get on the ground mid-June, conduct mapping, sampling, geochemistry and be drilling by early August.
“Joining as new White Rock shareholders includes the likes of Palisades Goldcorp – a new Canadian resource merchant bank, Denver-based Crescat Capital, and industry leading geologist Dr. Quinton Hennigh. Furthermore, having the strength and calibre of Canaccord Genuity and Martin Place Securities supporting White Rock speaks volumes to the quality and exploration opportunity at the Last Chance prospect.
“It is also extremely pleasing to note that our major shareholder Sandfire Resources Limited has agreed to support the capital raising by participating in the Placement to maintain their holding above 10%, as well as a sub- underwriting commitment under the SPP.
“The Board is very appreciative of the strong support shown from our current shareholders, and welcomes the interest and support being shown from the new investors joining the White Rock journey through this Equity Raising. This is an exciting time for White Rock and its shareholders.”
Dr. Quinton Hennigh is an internationally renowned economic geologist, with more than 25 years of exploration experience and expertise with major gold mining companies including Homestake Mining Company, Newcrest Mining Limited, and Newmont Mining Corporation. Quinton has made several significant gold discoveries for Canadian exploration companies such as the 5 million oz. Springpole alkaline gold deposit near Red Lake, Ontario, for Gold Canyon Resources. He is Chairman and President of Pilbara-focused Novo Resources Corp., which he was one of the founders of in 2009.
Dr Hennigh said that the Last Chance target is potentially one of the largest and highest magnitude gold anomalies he has ever seen.
“Based on the particular sampling technique employed, I am confident that the large and robust gold anomaly is highly significant and likely indicates the presence of a very large, never before recognised nor drill tested gold system that is chemically akin to the large Pogo deposit (Northern Star; 10 Moz at 11 g/t gold) situated approximately 200 km to the east-northeast.
“Events leading to the discovery of the Last Chance anomaly are remarkably similar to the history of discovery at Pogo. Follow up soil sampling quickly identified drill targets and the first exploratory drill hole intercepted the large Liese zones, what became the high grade core of the Pogo deposit.
“White Rock Minerals plans to undertake aggressive soil sampling at Last Chance to try and quickly identify drill targets in an effort to replicate this pattern of discovery. Barring delays due to COVID-19, the Company anticipates developing drill targets by late July and undertaking up to 2,500m in its first phase drill test this season, weather dependent.
It is a very exciting story and I am pleased to help White Rock advance this remarkable new gold project.” Dr Hennigh said.