EQ Resources (ASX:EQR) secures $6m for Mt Carbine expansion

• EQ Resources (EQR) raises $6 million to fund the expansion of its Mt Carbine tungsten mine in North Queensland
• The two-year convertible notes are set to be issued at 6.5 cents per share on Thursday September 16
• The company said the expansion is the next “logical” step after the trial mining and test work program performed under the METS grant project
• In the coming weeks, EQR plans to release an updated JORC compliant resource estimate and reserve statement to support the BFS works
• Shares are trading 11.1 per cent higher at 5 cents at 12:48pm AEST

EQ Resources (EQR) is set to raise $6 million to fund the expansion of its Mt Carbine tungsten mine in North Queensland. 

The company is scheduled to issue the two-year convertible notes with a conversion of 6.5 cents per share, marking a 45 per cent premium to the last price of 4.5 cents per share, on Thursday September 16. 

Twenty-five million options will also be issued, with an exercise price of 6.5 cents and a two-year expiry together with a 4 per cent fee in association with costs of the issue. 

The money will go towards early works for the expansion which the company said is the next “logical” step to the 12 months trial mining and test work program performed under the recently completed METS grant project. 

As part of this work, a new $1.7 million mining fleet is reportedly arriving at site, and the required power and screening upgrades are planned to be completed by the end of the year.

With the additional mining fleet and early works, the company said it will be able to run a 24/7 operation of the crushing and XRT sorting, at daily crushing throughput of up to 3000 tonnes of low-grade ore.

The funding has been secured ahead of the release of EQR’s bankable feasibility study (BFS) which comprises the expansion of tungsten operation from the 12 million tonne low-grade ore stockpile and the reactivation of open pit mining from the Andy White pit. 

CEO Kevin MacNeill welcomed the support by the lenders and said the money will allow the company to “further increase production of tungsten concentrate at a time of strong prices for this critical metal, and continue to expand the overall resource through further investigation and drilling”.

In the coming weeks, EQR plans to release an updated JORC compliant resource estimate and reserve statement to support the BFS works. 

Shares were trading 11.1 per cent higher at 5 cents at 12:48pm AEST.