CAML Central Asia Metals Plc

25 March 2024

CENTRAL ASIA METALS PLC

('CAML' or the 'Company')

Investment in Aberdeen Minerals Ltd

Central Asia Metals plc (AIM: CAML) announces a conditional investment of £3 million in Aberdeen Minerals Limited ('Aberdeen') to acquire a 28.7% shareholding (the 'Initial Investment'). The Initial Investment will be undertaken through a subscription for 35,294,117 new ordinary shares in Aberdeen at a price of 8.5 pence per ordinary share. In addition, CAML will receive warrants to invest an additional £2 million at a price of 11 pence per share, which would increase CAML's ownership of Aberdeen to 37.8% assuming no further changes to Aberdeen's issued share capital.

Key Highlights

-      The investment in Aberdeen represents a low-cost entry for CAML into a focused junior exploration company which is actively exploring the Arthrath Project in Aberdeenshire, Northeast Scotland, and several promising targets in the underexplored surrounding district

-      This investment complements CAML's existing portfolio, further augmenting the Company's exposure to the base metals market, which is essential to facilitating the green energy transition

-      Aberdeen has already demonstrated the presence of scalable copper-nickel-cobalt mineralisation at Arthrath, encouraging drilling and geophysics results, and a compelling exploration model for high grade base metal sulphides at depth

-      The CEO of Aberdeen, Fraser Gardiner, and the geological team are based in close proximity to the project, with strong local relationships and a 7,400-hectare land position.

-      CAML's overall investment will fund:

o  Approximately 10,000 metres of drilling in two phases at Arthrath, aimed at determining the continuity of the high-grade mineralised intersections already identified at depth;

o  Should this drilling be successful, the preparation of a Mineral Resource Estimate ('MRE') and scoping level financial studies would be undertaken;

o  The continuation of Aberdeen's grant-supported metallurgical testwork in association with the UK Automotive Transformation Fund, a funding programme created to support the large-scale development of a high-value end-to-end electrified automotive supply chain in the UK; and

o  Soil geochemistry, ground geophysics and some exploratory drilling of district scale targets and ongoing generative work across the prospective Northeast Scotland region.  

-      As part of the investment, and whilst the Company's shareholding remains above 10% of Aberdeen's issued share capital, CAML will have the right to nominate a director to the board of Aberdeen. Louise Wrathall, CAML's Executive Director of Corporate Development, will join the Aberdeen board upon completion of the Initial Investment.

-      Additionally, under the terms of the Initial Investment, CAML will be granted warrants to subscribe for 18,181,818 ordinary shares, which are exercisable immediately and expire upon receipt of certain technical results, aligning with Aberdeen's budget. 

Completion of the investment is subject to the customary closing conditions, as well as:

-      The approval of certain resolutions at a general meeting of Aberdeen's shareholders;

-      The granting of clearance regarding the UK National Security and Investment Act 2021 ('NSI'); and

-      The granting of merger clearance in respect of notification requirements under the Republic of North Macedonia's Law on the Protection of Competition.

Louise Wrathall, CAML Executive Director of Corporate Development, commented:

"As a focused junior explorer with its CEO and exploration team based in Northeast Scotland, Aberdeen is well placed to undertake exploration in an exciting area that is prospective for copper and nickel mineralisation. Importantly, we believe Aberdeen has built an impressive land package in Aberdeenshire and has a firm foundation of strong local relationships.

"We have been impressed with the Aberdeen team and its approach to exploration, and we look forward to working together to discover the extent of the base metal potential in this area of Scotland.

"Our wider business development activities continue as we maintain our work appraising other accretive and potentially transformational opportunities that can contribute to CAML's long-term growth."

About Aberdeen Minerals Ltd

Aberdeen Minerals is a privately owned UK company focused on the exploration and development of base metal deposits in Northeast Scotland. Active since 2018, the company has partnered with landowners through exclusive land access and exploration agreements over geologically prospective areas of Aberdeenshire. Demand is growing for the metals that the Company targets in Northeast Scotland, which are strategically important for long term, responsibly sourced and secure supplies of the raw materials critical to the transition to a green economy in Scotland and the UK. 

For additional information on Aberdeen, visit the Company's website at https://aberdeenminerals.com/.

For further information contact:

Note to editors:

Central Asia Metals, an AIM-listed UK company based in London, owns 100% of the Kounrad SX-EW copper project in central Kazakhstan and 100% of the Sasa zinc-lead mine in North Macedonia. The CAML Exploration subsidiary was recently formed to progress early exploration opportunities in Kazakhstan.

For further information, please visit www.centralasiametals.com and follow CAML on Twitter at @CamlMetals and on LinkedIn at Central Asia Metals Plc