Wia Gold Limited says it raised N$208 million through binding placement commitments to advance the Kokoseb gold discovery in Namibia and broaden exploration activities at the company’s Côte d’Ivoire projects.
Wia said 211,250,000 new fully paid ordinary shares were offered in the company at A$0.08 per share to sophisticated, professional and institutional investors (placement).
“Drilling at Kokoseb is ongoing with three drill rigs currently active on site (one diamond and two RC). The focus of these drilling activities is two-fold – aggressive further MRE growth and classification upgrade,” Wia Executive Chairman Josef El-Raghy said.
El-Raghy noted a total of A$900,000 of the placement, has been subscribed subject to shareholder approval.
“It is an exciting time for Wia. Following the recent MRE increase, we still have multiple avenues to deliver substantial further growth in the Kokoseb deposit. Our technical team has invested in the exploration of this discovery extremely efficiently, as evidenced by our very low US$2.80 per ounce overall discovery cost to date at Kokoseb. I believe this bodes well for what we can achieve in our current and future drilling activities at Kokoseb,” he said.
Wia is conducting a placement of shares at a 5.9% discount to the last traded price and a 9.9% discount to the 15-day VWAP on the ASX.
The chair noted that 200,000,000 shares will be issued under existing ASX Listing Rules, with settlement expected on 30 April 2024, and allotment on 1 May 2024.
Meanwhile, the remaining 11,250,000 shares require shareholder approval, planned for the next General Meeting.
This comes after last week Wia Gold revised its Inferred Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) for the Kokoseb Deposit in Namibia, unveiling a notable increase to 2.1 million ounces at 1.0 grams per tonne (g/t) Au.
This marked a 63% rise in contained gold from the initial estimate. Wia’s Chairman Andrew Pardey said the Kokoseb deposit boasts one of the lowest discovery costs globally, standing at less than US$3/ounce of MRE-contained gold.
The Kokoseb gold project lies within the Okombahe Exploration Licence, which is held under a joint venture by WIA (80%) and the Namibian state-owned mining company, Epangelo Mining.
