- ioneer (INR) has raised $80 million through a heavily oversubscribed placement to accelerate work at its Rhyolite Ridge lithium-boron project
- The company had sought to raise $60 million, but the placement was upsized to $80 million following strong demand from both existing and new investors
- All up, just over 210.5 million new shares will be issued at a fixed price of 38 cents each
- Much of the proceeds will be used to progress detailed engineering work, which is around 60 per cent complete
- ioneer is down 13.64 per cent to $0.38 per share
ioneer (INR) has raised $80 million through a heavily oversubscribed placement to accelerate work at its Rhyolite Ridge lithium-boron project.
The Sydney-based company had originally sought to raise $60 million, but with a strong level of demand from both existing and new investors, the placement was upsized by $20 million.
Goldman Sachs and Ord Minnett acted as joint lead managers, bookrunners and underwriters for the placement, which included a cornerstone investment from BNP Paribas Energy Transition Fund.
All up, just over 210.5 million new shares will be issued at a price of 38 cents each, and are scheduled to begin trading on Wednesday, March 10.
“We are extremely pleased with the exceptionally strong reaction for our capital raising, which demonstrates the high quality of the Rhyolite Ridge Project based on the support from high quality domestic and international investor groups,” said Bernard Rowe, Managing Director of ioneer.
The proceeds will be used primarily to advance detailed engineering work, which is so far around 60 per cent complete. The company said it might also use the funds for environmental, research and consulting expenses, and discretionary substantive pre-construction activities.
ioneer said it anticipates receiving its final permits to begin construction in the fourth quarter of 2021, with a final investment decision expected later in the year.
“Rhyolite Ridge remains the most advanced and highest quality lithium project in the U.S., and with these additional funds we look forward to rapidly closing out a number of key value-adding milestones over the course of 2021 as we move quickly towards production and becoming a major part in the U.S. lithium supply chain,” Rowe concluded.
ioneer is down 13.64 per cent to $0.38 per share at 12:10am AEDT.