AIC Mines Ltd. has agreed to acquire a 100 per cent interest in Materra Metals, owner of the Mt Cuthbert copper project in northwest Queensland, for AU$120 million.
The transaction consideration comprises AU$100 million in new fully paid ordinary shares in AIC Mines and AU$20 million in cash, payable to vendor Dragon Field International and associated shareholders.
Located 150 kilometres northwest of AIC Mines’ operating Eloise copper mine, Mt Cuthbert encompasses 21 granted mining leases across a 2,400-square-kilometre tenement holding.
Mt Cuthbert hosts defined mineral resources of 18.7 million tonnes grading 1.3 per cent copper, containing 246,000 tonnes of copper across five deposits.
Existing site infrastructure includes an 8,000-tonne-per-annum solvent extraction and electrowinning (SXEW) plant currently on care and maintenance, a 64-room accommodation camp, and supporting workshops.
Mt Cuthbert offers significant upside for resource growth and discovery, underpinned by a clear pathway
to development. It is ideally suited to the exploration, development and mining experience that AIC Mines
has developed at Eloise-Jericho.
To fund the cash consideration and finance an accelerated exploration and resource drilling program, AIC Mines secured a AU$70 million equity placement from existing major shareholder Hawke’s Point Resource Finance. The placement involves issuing 88.1 million new shares at 79.5 cents per share.
AIC Mines Managing Director Aaron Colleran said the acquisition is a transformative milestone toward building a multi-mine copper and gold producer.
“Mt Cuthbert is by far the best opportunity we have seen due to its established resource base, strong exploration upside, and the strategic fit alongside our existing operations,” Colleran said.
“The acquisition provides AIC Mines with a clear pathway to becoming a multi-asset copper producer in the globally significant Mt Isa – Cloncurry region.”
AIC Mines plans to focus on the project’s copper sulphide potential, targeting deep drill programs and evaluating a standalone sulphide processing facility following the upcoming regional wet season.
The acquisition and equity placement remain subject to shareholder approval at an general meeting scheduled for early November.
