ARIANA RESOURCES PLC

Environmental & Social Information • Feb 23, 2016

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RNS Number : 7984P

Ariana Resources PLC

23 February 2016

23 February 2016

AIM: AAU

Ariana Resources

COMPLETION OF LITHIUM TRANSACTION

Ariana Resources plc ("Ariana" or "the Company"), through its 86%-owned Australian subsidiary, Asgard Metals Pty. Ltd. ("Asgard"), has completed the sale of a package of tenements in the Pilbara region of Western Australia to Dakota Minerals Limited (ASX:DKO) ("Dakota"), as announced on 18 December 2015.

Highlights:

·     Completion of the transaction has occurred following the satisfaction of all conditions, including grant of the core tenement, Dakota shareholder approval for the transaction and a A$3.6 million capital raising by Dakota.

·     Completion of the initial cash payment to Asgard of A$147,000 and 22,500,000 fully paid ordinary shares in Dakota (currently valued at A$1.2 million); Ariana now owns approximately 8% of Dakota.

·     Asgard to benefit from a fixed consulting fee of A$98,000 over the course of 12 months and up to 29,400,000 performance shares which are to be issued on the achievement of certain project milestones. 

·     Asgard exploration model for lithium is being applied to identify new project opportunities across other geological provinces worldwide, including those in Turkey.

Dr. Kerim Sener, Managing Director, commented: 

"The completion of our transaction with Dakota is a significant boost to our emerging interests in technology-metals and proves our exploration targeting capabilities in parallel with our ability to rapidly commercialise new project opportunities outside of Turkey.  We are continuing our efforts to identify further projects in the technology-metals space with a special focus on lithium at this time." 

Ariana's Strategy

Asgard has been pursuing a strategy of commodity diversification on behalf of Ariana, with a special focus on technology-commodities, particularly those that may be used in renewable energy applications.  Commodities of particular interest to Asgard currently include lithium and antimony, which are found in association with certain gold mineralisation systems in both Turkey and Western Australia, among other gold-provinces worldwide.  Asgard has developed an exploration model specifically for lithium, which it is applying to other regions with the aim of identifying new exploration areas for future licence acquisition. 

Summary of Agreement

Asgard sold its interests in its tenements at Pilgangoora in the Pilbara region of Western Australia to Dakota Minerals Limited (ASX:DKO).  In consideration for this, Asgard was paid A$147,000 in cash and was issued with 22,500,000 fully paid ordinary shares in Dakota by completion.  In addition, Asgard will benefit from the following performance share payments:

·     14,700,000 shares upon an Inferred Mineral Resource of 5 Mt at 1.2% Li2O being identified on any of the tenements and announced to the ASX by Dakota in accordance with the requirements of the JORC Code; and

·     14,700,000 shares upon an Inferred Mineral Resource of 15 Mt at 1.2% Li2O being identified on any of the tenements and announced to the ASX by Dakota in accordance with the requirements of the JORC Code.

Asgard has entered in to a consultancy services agreement with Dakota for a fixed term of 12 months to provide geological and exploration consultancy services for the introduction of new projects to Dakota.  Consideration for the consultancy services agreement will be A$98,000 payable per annum in monthly instalments to Asgard. 

Dakota has completed a placement of A$3.6 million in two tranches underwritten by Argonaut Capital Limited.  Tranche 1 for A$524,490 before expenses was raised without the requirement for shareholder approval.  Tranche 2 required shareholder approval and raised A$3,075,510 before expenses.  The funds raised were applied in part to fund the acquisition of the tenements and to commit A$700,000 on their exploration.

Contacts:

Ariana Resources plc	Tel: +44 (0) 20 7407 3616
Michael de Villiers, Chairman
Kerim Sener, Managing Director
Beaumont Cornish Limited (NOMAD)	Tel: +44 (0) 20 7628 3396
Roland Cornish / Felicity Geidt
Beaufort Securities Limited (Joint Broker)	Tel: +44 (0) 20 7382 8300
Jon Belliss
Loeb Aron & Company Ltd. (Joint Broker)	Tel: +44 (0) 20 7628 1128
John Beresford-Peirse
IFC Advisory (Financial PR)	Tel: +44 (0) 20 3053 8671
Tim Metcalfe Graham Herring Heather Armstrong

Editors' note:

About Ariana Resources:

Ariana is an exploration and development company focused on epithermal gold-silver and porphyry copper-gold deposits in Turkey.  The Company is developing a portfolio of prospective licences selected on the basis of its in-house geological and remote-sensing database, on its own in western Turkey and in Joint Venture with Eldorado Gold Corporation in north-eastern Turkey.  Eldorado owns 51% of this joint venture and are fully funding all exploration work on the JV properties, while Ariana owns 49%.  The total resource inventory within this JV is 1.09 million ounces of gold.

The Company's flagship assets are its Kiziltepe and Tavsan gold projects which form the Red Rabbit Gold Project.  Both contain a series of prospects, within two prolific mineralised districts in the Western Anatolian Volcanic and Extensional (WAVE) Province in western Turkey.  This Province hosts the largest operating gold mines in Turkey and remains highly prospective for new porphyry and epithermal deposits.  These core projects, which are separated by a distance of 75km, are presently being assessed as to their economic merits and now form part of a Joint Venture with Proccea Construction Co.  The total resource inventory at the Red Rabbit Project stands at 475,000 ounces of gold equivalent. 

Beaufort Securities Limited and Loeb Aron & Company Ltd. are joint brokers to the Company and Beaumont Cornish Limited is the Company's Nominated Adviser.

For further information on Ariana you are invited to visit the Company's website at www.arianaresources.com.

Ends

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