- Lunnon Metals (LM8) agrees to buy the exclusive rights to nickel at two historical nickel mines in Western Australia from South African major miner Gold Fields subsidiary, SIGMC
- Under the deal, Lunnon will give SIGMC $20 million in shares for the rights, which includes the Silver Lake and Fisher projects
- Both mines closed with nickel mineralisation remaining potentially unmined, according to Lunnon
- Lunnon now plans to fast track all activities at Kambalda
- Company shares last traded at $1.04 per share
Lunnon Metals (LM8) has agreed to buy the exclusive rights to nickel at two historical nickel mines in Western Australia from South African major miner Gold Fields.
The company has purchased the rights to the Silver Lake and Fisher projects, expanding its Kambalda nickel project, from Gold Fields’ wholly-owned subsidiary St Ives Gold Mining Co (SIGMC) in exchange for $20 million in Lunnon shares.
Notably, SIGMC is currently a major shareholder in Lunnon and if this deal is complete would own 34 per cent of the company.
Lunnon said the purchase puts it in “one of the world’s most renowned nickel belts.”
Silver Lake and Fisher produced over 161,000 tonnes of nickel during their operations under the ownership of WMC Resources (now called BHP Nickel West).
Silver Lake was the mine developed on the famous Lunnon nickel shoot, which is named after Jack Lunnon who drilled the discovery hole, KD1, at Kambalda.
Both mines closed with nickel mineralisation remaining potentially unmined, according to Lunnon.
“We are thrilled to announce this transaction. Acquiring the nickel rights from SIGMC to the last two historical nickel mines previously owned by WMC Resources represents a
doubling of our footprint and cements the company’s place in one of the world’s most renowned nickel belts,” Managing Director Ed Ainscough said.
“We also view SIGMC’s confidence in Lunnon Metals as reflecting the success of our discovery programme and the growth of the company since its IPO in June 2021. The plan now is to fast track all activities at Kambalda – discovery, resource growth, permitting, underground re-entry and development studies, to achieve our mission statement and
become a key player in the heart of the Kambalda nickel district.”
On the market, Lunnon entered a trading halt and last traded at $1.04 per share.