AIM-listed miner issues 27.5 billion new shares at 0.00436p, diluting existing holders by about 35.5%, as it pivots from stockpile-building to a short campaign to prove the Zimbabwe plant can run stably
Premier African Minerals has raised about £1.2 million to restart processing at its Zulu Lithium and Tantalum Project in Zimbabwe. The money will initially fund only a 15-day operating campaign, designed to show whether the plant can deliver stable production.
The AIM-listed company said on October 5 that it had issued 27.52 billion new shares at 0.00436 pence each to institutional and professional investors. The net proceeds will provide working capital for the planned recommencement of operations at Zulu.
The restart marks a shift from Premier’s earlier strategy, which was to build a larger run-of-mine (ROM) stockpile before switching the processing plant back on.
Managing Director Graham Hill said the funding “enables us to move directly towards restarting plant operations at Zulu”, adding that the decision was “a change from our original plan, which was to build a larger ROM stockpile before recommencing processing.”
Hill said progress during the previous operating period had given the board enough confidence to go ahead using material already on site. “However, the progress achieved during the previous operating period has provided the Board with a basis to proceed with the restart, while maintaining our focus on achieving stable and consistent production of spodumene concentrate,” he said.
Premier plans to process about 13,000 tonnes of ore already on the ROM pad over a campaign of roughly 15 days. The campaign will be judged on four measures: sustained plant operation, product quality, recoveries and throughput.
“We believe the best use of the Company’s available resources at this stage is to process the material already on the ROM pad and demonstrate the satisfactory performance of the plant,” Hill said. “Our immediate target is an approximately 15-day campaign, during which the principal focus will be on sustained plant operation, product quality and recoveries.”
The company said the results will determine whether operations continue beyond the initial test. Premier is not presenting the £1.2 million as enough for a full-scale restart. The cash is being used to establish whether the plant can operate consistently before further capital is committed.
Personnel, diesel, reagents and other consumables are being mobilised, and supplier engineers are expected on site to support operations and further optimise the spodumene flotation plant.
Additional blasted ore remains available within Zulu’s exploration prospecting area (EPO). It could be moved to the ROM pad after the initial campaign, but only if the plant performs satisfactorily and enough working capital is available.
“Importantly, this approach should provide us with the opportunity to extend operations,” Hill said. He added that “additional blasted material remains available within the EPO and may be mobilised to the ROM pad following the initial campaign, subject to satisfactory performance and the availability of working capital.”
Premier said the results would feed into its next decisions. They will “inform subsequent operational and funding decisions, including the potential remobilisation of mining activities and continuation of plant operations beyond the initial 15-day period.”
Zulu therefore faces a two-stage test. It must first prove the existing ore can be processed reliably, then secure enough funding to keep the plant supplied and move back towards mining and sustained production.
Hill said the operational evidence would also matter in talks with investors. “A successful campaign should provide the Board, shareholders and potential funding partners with greater visibility on the operational capability of Zulu and a stronger basis from which to determine the next stage of the project,” he said.
The placing substantially enlarges Premier’s share count. The company has issued 27,522,935,780 new shares, taking total issued share capital to 77,597,203,602. The new shares represent about 35.5% of the enlarged capital, so existing shareholders who did not take part in the subscription face significant dilution.
Premier said the proceeds will principally fund operating expenditure at Zulu, including mining and stockpiling, operational personnel, diesel, reagents and other consumables. They will also cover “the management of essential creditors at Zulu” and the group’s wider working capital needs.
The raise comes as Premier tries to move Zulu from repeated operational and financing difficulties towards consistent production. The company has previously stressed the importance of stable operations at the project, and this announcement puts plant performance ahead of rebuilding a larger stockpile. The approach also lets Premier use the 13,000 tonnes already on the pad as an operational test, rather than committing scarce cash to a bigger stockpile before the plant has shown it can perform.
