Prospech Limited: Lithium and Rare Earth Element Projects in Finland - Expansion of Kolba Copper-Cobalt Project

15 March 2023

Highlights

-          Increased focus on European critical minerals and preparation for Kolba drilling.

-          Agreement to earn up to 100% of Bambra Oy, a Finnish company with lithium and rare earth element (REE) exploration projects in Finland.

-          Earn in agreement enables Prospech to acquire Bambra Oy and its Jokikangas REE, Korsnas REE and Saarenkylä lithium projects.

-          Application to extend Kolba exploration licence area in Slovakia by 3.8 times along strike of known mineralisation.

-          Kolba drill targets identified and drill permitting is in progress for the commencement of drilling.

Prospech Managing Director Jason Beckton commented:

“On the back of our successful exploration results at the Kolba project, Prospech is excited to announce a material expansion of its exploration focus on European critical minerals.  We have assembled a portfolio of highly prospective lithium, rare earth elements and precious metals projects in Northern and Eastern European jurisdictions that are highly supportive of mining.

Demand in Europe for locally supplied critical minerals has strong government support to meet as much European demand for critical minerals from local sources as possible.

In addition to imminently planned drilling at Kolba, we have submitted applications that, when granted, will increase the Kolba exploration licence area by 3.8 times along strike of known mineralisation.

We are pleased to announce that agreement has been reached for the earn-in acquisition of 100% of Bambra Oy, a Finnish company with lithium and rare earth element exploration projects in Finland.

The brownfield targets of Jokikangas, Korsnas and Saarenkylä will provide shareholders with an entry point to the REE and lithium market in the EU.  These targets in Finland have been worked on and prepared since 2018.

In addition to the exposure to this suite of critical minerals, Prospech retains, with low holding costs, a further six underexplored precious metals projects in Slovakia.

Access to rich data bases will result in cost effective exploration with walk up drill targets and, as such, generate a pipeline of exploration results.  News flow in the near term will include drilling at the Kolba cobalt-copper-silver-nickel system, field sampling lithium targets at Saarenkylä and resampling of available REE diamond drill core.”

Critical Minerals Focus

Prospech has assembled a portfolio of highly prospective lithium, REE and precious metals projects in Northern and Eastern European jurisdictions that are highly supportive of mining.

Demand in the European Union (‘EU’) for locally supplied critical minerals is supported with government interventions such as the European Critical Raw Material Act which is designed to create a European network of raw materials agencies and to take steps to meet as much of European demand for critical minerals from local sources as possible.

Announcing the European Critical Raw Materials Act in Brussels on 14 September 2022, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said:

“Lithium and rare earths are already replacing gas and oil at the heart of our economy.

By 2030 our demand for rare earth metals will increase fivefold.  We have to avoid falling into the same dependency [on Russia] as with oil and gas.

We will identify strategic projects all along the supply chain, from extraction to refining, from processing to recycling and we will build up strategic reserves where supply is at risk.”

Stated target objectives include:

-          30% of the EU’s demand for lithium to originate from the EU by 2030.

-          Demand for rare earths to increase five-fold by 2030.

-          Dependence for critical minerals on non-European countries to be reduced.

Agreement to acquire Finland projects

The Company has signed an earn-in agreement with the shareholders of Bambra Oy (‘Bambra’), a company incorporated in Finland, to earn up to a 100% interest in Bambra and therefore, acquire Bambra’s 100% interest in the Jokikangas REE project, the Korsnas REE project and Saarenkylä lithium project in Finland (‘Finland Projects’).

Earn-in agreement

Prospech’s exclusive right to acquire 100% of Bambra is staged over two years with consideration being an initial payment of $25,000 (‘Exclusivity Payment’), a series of exploration and evaluation expenditures and the issuance of Prospech consideration shares.

For the first year option, Prospech can earn a 51% interest in Bambra by the expenditure of $100,000, including the Exclusivity Payment, on the exploration and evaluation of the Finland Projects and, if exercised by Prospech, the issue of 3.0 million fully paid ordinary shares in Prospech to the shareholders of Bambra (‘First Option’).

For the second year option, subject to the completion of the First Option, Prospech can earn the remaining interest in Bambra, so as to own 100% of Bambra, by the expenditure of $200,000 on the exploration and evaluation of the Finland Projects and, if exercised by Prospech, the issue of a further 3.0 million shares to the shareholders of Bambra.

The Bambra shareholders include 1147 Pty Ltd (’Mann Trust’), being an entity controlled by Thomas Mann, a Director of the Company, and Jason Beckton, a Director of the Company (together, ‘Related Parties’).

The Related Parties hold a total of 50.6% interest in Bambra and, should the Company proceed with the acquisition of 100% of Bambra, the Relate Parties will receive approximately 3,035,548 Prospech shares with an aggregate value of approximately $73,000 (‘Consideration Shares’), which based on the last trading price of $0.024 of Prospech shares equates to approximately 1.0% of the equity interests of the Company as set out in the Company’s 31 December 2022 Annual Report.

Prior to the issuance of the Consideration Shares to the Related Parties, Prospech will seek any required shareholder approvals for the purposes of the ASX Listing Rules.

About Finland and the Finland Projects

Finland is known to be a favourable mining jurisdiction within the EU, ranked ninth in the world in the 2021 Fraser Institute Annual Survey of Mining Companies, Policy Perception Index and 13th in the Investment Attractiveness Index, ahead of jurisdictions including Queensland, NSW and Victoria.

Prospech’s geologic team has had experience in country and the acquisition of Bambra will add a local permitting and administration team with a wealth of country experience.

Exploration tenure for the two REE projects has been drilled before and this core will be in the first instance resampled for REE in known mineralised zones.

The agreement to acquire Bambra gives Prospech exclusivity to the following exploration rights and all other interests which Bambra may acquire within 2.0 kilometres beyond the perimeter of these properties:

1. Tenement areas are reserved by Reservation notifications which are followed by Exploration Permit applications.  These Exploration Permit applications are currently in handling by the Finnish Mining Authority.

2. Reservation notification expires on 18 April 2024:  Exploration Permit to be applied for before Reservation expiry.

A further Reservation notification, which falls within Prospech’s exclusive area of interest, has been lodged to expand the Saarenkylä lithium project tenement area and will, when granted, form part of Prospech’s exploration rights.

Location map of the Bambra projects in Finland.

Link to entire English original news:

https://cdn-api.markitdigital.com/apiman-gateway/ASX/asx-research/1.0/file/2924-02643788-2A1437609?access_token=83ff96335c2d45a094df02a206a39ff4

For further information, please contact.

Jason Beckton

Managing Director

Prospech Limited

+61 (0)438 888 612

This announcement has been authorised for release to the market by the Board of Prospech Limited.

Authorised for release to the market by the Board of Directors.

Competent Person’s Statement

The information in this Report that relates to Exploration Results is based on information compiled by Mr Jason Beckton, who is a Member of the Australian Institute of Geoscientists.  Mr Beckton, who is Managing Director of the Company, has sufficient experience which is relevant to the style of mineralisation and type of deposit under consideration and to the activity which he is undertaking to qualify as a Competent Person as defined in the 2012 edition of the ‘Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves’.  Mr Beckton consents to the inclusion in this Report of the matters based on the information in the form and context in which it appears.