Anglesey Mining
plc is a UK company engaged in the development of owned and managed
mining projects.
Parys Mountain:
100% ownership of the Parys Mountain underground
copper-zinc-lead-silver-gold deposit in North Wales, UK where an independent
Preliminary Economic Assessment dated January 2021 included a
financial model for a 3,000 tpd mining operation with a pre-tax
NPV10% of US$120 million, (£96
million), 26% IRR and 12-year mine
life.
Grängesberg:
49.75% interest in the Grängesberg iron ore project in Sweden where Anglesey has management
rights.
An independent
Pre-Feasibility Study announced on 19 July
2022 demonstrated Probable Ore Reserves of 82.4 million
tonnes supporting a 16-year mine life with annual production of 2.5
million tonnes of high-grade concentrate grading 70% iron ore and a
post-tax NPV8% of US$688 million with
an IRR of 25.9% after tax.
Labrador Iron
Mines: 11.9% shareholding in Labrador Iron Mines Holdings Limited
which holds Direct Shipping Ore (DSO) deposits of iron in
Canada where an independent
Preliminary Economic Assessment of its Houston project published in 2021 showed
potential for production of 2 million tonnes of DSO per year, with
an initial 12-year mine life, for total production of 23.4 million
tonnes of product at 62.2% Fe over the life of the
mine.
The AGM will be
held at the Geological Society, Burlington
House,
Piccadilly, London W1J 0BG on 8
November 2024 at 11
am
Chairman’s
statement
To
Anglesey Shareholders
The
2023-24 financial year was another challenging year for Anglesey
Mining plc which saw a number of board and management changes but
also the ongoing advancement of the Parys Mountain
project.
Board
changes
At the
2023 Annual General Meeting long-time Chairman of Anglesey Mining,
John Kearney, was not re-elected to
the Board and as a result I was appointed into the role of Interim
Chairman of your company. John had been Chairman for nearly 29
years, having been appointed in November
1994. On behalf of the Board and the shareholders I would
like to thank John for his service to Anglesey Mining over the
period of his tenure.
On
14th
November 2023 the Board accepted the resignation of
Danesh Varma. Danesh, like John,
joined the Board in November 1994. It
is with sadness that I report to you the death of Danesh on
8th
August 2024.
Jo Battershill stepped down as Chief executive effective
31st
December 2023 to take up a new executive role in
Australia but remained on the
board as a non-executive director.
I would
like to thank Jo for all his effort during his time as Chief
executive and his ongoing support of Anglesey Mining.
We were
also sorry also to accept the resignation of Namrata Verma as a non-executive director on
6th September 2024 but understand her
reasons for leaving and wish her every success in the
future.
Parys
Mountain
Important
geological work has continued throughout the year at Parys Mountain
with new exploration drilling into the Northern Copper Zone. We are
very encouraged by the results and further work is continuing. We
would like to firm up our knowledge and increase the tonnage of the
declared geological resource, thus improving the business case for
developing a long term mining operation at Parys
Mountain.
Grängesberg
and Labrador Iron Mines Holdings
During the
financial year we maintained our shareholding in Grängesberg AB in
Sweden and Labrador Iron Mines
Holdings in Canada and continue to
explore alternatives to optimise and realise value for Anglesey
Mining’s interest in these assets.
Appreciation
I wish to
recognise the dedication and enthusiasm of our small management
team, led by Jo Battershill. After
the financial year end, in May 2024,
we were delighted to welcome Rob
Marsden as our company’s CEO. I would also like to thank our
board of directors for their leadership, as well as consultants and
advisors for their contribution. Finally, I should welcome our new
shareholders and thank them, and all our shareholders, for their
continued support.
Andrew King
Interim
Chairman
27 September 2024
Strategic
report - Operations
As the
newly appointed Chief executive of Anglesey Mining it is my
pleasure to report to you the activities that have been undertaken
in the 2023-24 financial year; in doing so I must thank my
predecessor Jo Battershill for
providing a strong basis from which to build. It is to his immense
credit that the first drilling campaign since 2012 into the
Northern Copper Zone was able to be undertaken during the back half
of the financial year with the assay results reported during the
first half of calendar year 2024.
Under
Jo’s direction the great bulk of the EIA scoping document was
completed. I was grateful for the opportunity to review it and
submit it to the planning authorities in the first weeks of my
tenure. It is a detailed, robust assessment of the likely impacts
that underground mining and processing of minerals on Parys
Mountain will have. It is an essential report to guide the
strategies which will be put in place to avoid, mitigate and where
required, compensate for those impacts.
The
geological resources form the basis for every other subsequent
aspect in the planning and evaluation phase, from the mine design
through to metallurgy and management of tailings. In addition to
the new drilling into the Northern Copper Zone which I have already
mentioned, new resource estimates were made of the White Rock and Engine Zones at Parys Mountain
allowing the first inclusion of tonnes in the measured category of
mineral resource reporting.
The
combined mineral resource estimate for the White Rock and Engine Zones is now reported at
5.72Mt grading 0.36% Cu, 2.30% Zn, 1.24% Pb, 28/t Ag and 0.28g/t Au
or 2.0% Copper Equivalent (CuEq) / 5.6% Zinc Equivalent (ZnEq). All
the resources were reported above a cut-off based on a net smelter
revenue of US$45.15/t, including
1.6Mt at 2.5% CuEq in the Engine Zone. The White Rock and Engine Zones have 5.28Mt (92%)
of the resource now reporting to the Measured and Indicated
categories with 23% Measured and 70% Indicated.
The
overall mineral resource estimate for Parys Mountain, including the
Northern Copper Zone, is reported at 16.1Mt grading 1.0% Cu, 1.3%
Zn, 0.7% Pb, 15g/t Ag and 0.2g/t Au. (1.9% CuEq or 5.3% ZnEq)
containing 486,000t of combined Zn/Pb/Cu, 7.9Moz silver and 86koz
gold.
These
two programs of work highlighted the outstanding exploration
potential of the project. Several zones have been identified where
mineralisation could potentially extend beyond the resource
boundary, indicating that once mining commences at Parys Mountain
the probability of finding more ore zones is very high, as with
many volcanogenic massive sulphide deposits.
In
May 2023, an equity placing and
subscription raised gross proceeds of £1m and following this in
July 2023, a further placing raised
gross proceeds of £0.5m.
In
December 2023 we reported the results
of metallurgical test work carried out on a 340kg sample of
White Rock and Engine Zone
material, which, as it is shaft adjacent, is very likely to be
among the first mineralisation to be mined at Parys Mountain. The
highlight of this work was the demonstration that a successful
pre-concentration stage would be applicable. Tests of two
pre-concentration methods were conducted – Dense Media Separation
(DMS) undertaken by Pesco and X-Ray Transmission sorting (XRT)
completed by TOMRA. These showed the overall base metals only
head-grade increasing from 7.5% ZnEq to 11.4% ZnEq from the DMS
(+52%) with 35% mass rejection and metal loss of 5.2% and 11.7%
ZnEq from the XRT (+55%) with 29% mass rejection and metal loss of
3.0%.
Licence
to operate
It is
well understood at Anglesey Mining that it is ultimately a
combination of economic, regulatory, environmental and social
aspects of developing and operating a mining operation that will
provide us with a licence to operate, which is the enabler of
realising a return on investment.
The
group has publicly committed to updating the existing planning
permissions that it holds for Parys Mountain and an Environmental
Impact Assessment (EIA) has been allowed for in the planning
submission process. Work has been undertaken throughout the year to
progress both the planning application and the EIA.
At the
beginning of the financial year in April
2023 a pre-application consultation was held on the Parys
Mountain site and in the town of Amlwch with a number of statutory
consultees including Natural Resources Wales, Cadw, Anglesey County
Council Departments (including Environmental Health, Highways &
Transportation, Ecology & Environment and Heritage),
Archaeological Planning Services, local councillors and members of
both Westminster and Welsh
governments.
Throughout
the year, baseline surveys and ecological studies have continued,
the results from which, taken together with the feedback from all
stakeholders, enabled the EIA Scoping Report to be submitted to the
North Wales Minerals and Waste Planning Service which assesses
mineral planning applications on behalf of the Isle of Anglesey
County Council and other county councils within the North Wales region.
The
Scoping Report forms part of our first stage in the EIA process and
comes after almost 2-years of extensive studies and work by the
team on site. Cumulative expenditure on the EIA process in that
timeframe is in excess of £300,000. The report sets out all the
project’s perceived impacts, specifically identifying any crucial
and significant factors which will be assessed as part of the final
EIA report, the compilation of which will require further
environmental and ecological work.
At this
EIA Scoping stage, the project description remains indicative and
will be refined following ongoing mining engineering studies,
economic analysis and discussions with neighbours, the wider
community and other stakeholders.
Preservation
of existing heritage areas, sites of special scientific interest
(SSSI’s) and scheduled historic monuments and buildings have been a
major factor in determining the location of new proposed surface
infrastructure and similarly other environmental and social
considerations. The EIA Scoping Report considers how measures to
avoid, mitigate or compensate would be identified to address the
impacts of the project.
Grängesberg
The
Grängesberg project is a substantial iron ore asset with an
estimate of 82.4Mtpa of Probable Ore Reserves located in a very
favourable jurisdiction. During the 1980s the mine, located about
200 kilometres north-west of Stockholm, had produced around 180Mt of iron
ore and current plans envisage the production of high-grade ore at
or above 70% Fe.
The
group holds a direct 49.75% interest in the Grängesberg project,
together with management rights.
Labrador
Anglesey
Mining has a 11.9% holding in the OTC listed Labrador Iron Mines
Holdings Limited (“LIMH”), which through its 52% owned subsidiaries
Labrador Iron Mines Limited (“LIM”) and Schefferville Mines Inc.
(“SMI”), is engaged in the exploration and development of iron ore
projects in the central part of the Labrador Trough region, one of
the major iron ore producing regions in the world, situated in the
Menihek area in the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador and in the Province of Quebec, centred near the town of Schefferville, Quebec.
Financial results
and position
There
are no revenues from the operation of the properties.
The loss
before other comprehensive income for the year ended 31 March 2024 after tax was £1,213,279 compared
to a loss of £961,288 in the 2023 fiscal year. The administrative
and other costs excluding investment income and finance charges
were £839,424 compared to £696,545 in the previous year. Higher
salaries and corporate advisor charges accounted for a significant
part of this increase. Some was due to one-off charges for
Grängesberg expenses in respect of prior periods. There were also
share based payments charges representing the value of warrants
granted to subscribers to the group’s placings and subscriptions
during the year, compared to none last year.
The
value of the group’s holding in LIM is reported in other
comprehensive income and effectively is based on its share price.
This year there is a loss of £0.63 million as the share price
declined. The outcome for the group is a total comprehensive loss
for the year of £1,859,181, compared to a loss of £1,462,670 in the
previous year.
During
the year there were no additions to fixed assets (2023 - nil) and
£679,475 (2023 - £460,118) was capitalised in respect of the Parys
Mountain property, as the programme of geological and environmental
work as well as drilling continued as described in this Strategic
report.
At
31 March 2024 the mineral property
exploration and evaluation assets had a carrying value of £16.9
(2023 - £16.2) million. These carrying values are supported by the
results of the 2021 Preliminary Economic Assessment of the Parys
Mountain project.
At the
reporting date, as detailed in note 10, the directors considered
the carrying value of the Parys Mountain exploration and evaluation
assets to determine whether specific facts and circumstances
suggest there is any indication of impairment. They carefully
considered the positive results of the resource update completed in
March 2023, the independent PEA and
the plans for moving the project forward. Consequently, the
directors concluded that there were no facts and circumstances
which materially changed during the year which might trigger an
impairment review and that there are no indicators of
impairment.
In May
and July 2023 £1.5 million was raised
by means of investor placings. Directors participated in these
placings and warrants were issued to subscribers. Further details
are included in the directors’ report and note 20. Subsequent to
the year-end, on 28 June 2024 and
25 September 2024, placings of equity
were completed raising £415,000 and £220,000 gross. See note
29.
The cash
balance at 31 March 2024 was
£219,685, compared to £247,134 at 31 March
2023. At 17 September 2024 the
group had cash resources of £113,602.
At
31 March 2024 there were 420,093,017
ordinary shares in issue (2023 – 295,220,548), the increase being
due to the financing events referred to above. At 17 September 2024 there were 461,593,017 ordinary
shares in issue.
Outlook
In the current year, we
are:
-
Developing strategies to
enable investment in the development of Parys Mountain to be, so
far as practicable, incremental, thus allowing risks to be
mitigated in stages, before considering the options for the next
step of development.
-
Progressing the
re-permitting of Parys Mountain, the key aspect of which is the
assessment of environmental and social impacts. We are developing
action plans to avoid, mitigate and where necessary compensate for
the adverse impacts of the future mining and processing operations,
communicating and setting these out publicly and responding to
comments and questions. We are collaborating closely with
stakeholders, communities, industry and supply chain participants,
particularly around minimising potential environmental impacts and
maximising economic development opportunities for local
communities.
-
Consolidating and
cross-referencing the plethora of data about the geology of Parys
Mountain and the mineralisation occurrences within, that has been
observed, measured and collected since the 1960s. Re-sampling and
re-logging, and in some cases first time sampling, of exploration
drill core obtained in pervious drilling campaigns. Re-examining
the important work that was done mapping and sampling of the
geology exposed in the excavated 280m
(below surface) level in the modern underground mine when it was
open in 1990.
-
Engaging with a range of
potential partners to progress the development of the Grängesberg
mine in Sweden which if successful
will allow our management more time to focus on Parys
Mountain.
Development of a new mine
at Parys Mountain, producing copper, zinc and lead with gold and
silver credits, can deliver economic growth in the UK, regional
jobs for the community and business opportunities for local service
providers. Importantly, these critical and strategic metals,
essential for the decarbonisation of the economy, are primarily
imported into the UK currently. This creates a unique and timely
opportunity, both for Anglesey Mining and for the UK, to develop a
new, modern, mine at Parys Mountain in an environmentally
sustainable manner.
This report was approved
by the board of directors on 27 September
2024 and signed on its behalf by:
Rob Marsden
Chief
Executive
The full annual report is avalable on the company's website at
www.angleseymining.co.uk
