26 February
2018
Altona Energy
Plc
(“Altona” or “the Company”)
Appointment of
Consulting Geologist
Altona (AIM: ANR), a coal exploration company focused on
South Australia, is pleased to
announce it has engaged the services of a local and highly
experienced consulting exploration geologist, Brenton Newell, to work with the Company in the
initial stages of its project.
Mr Newell, is a geologist with over 30 years’ experience in a
range of commodities, and has worked with many companies in
Australia, ranging from BHP
Billiton to ASX-listed junior explorers.
Mr Newell is charged with designing an exploration programme
focused on the south-west of the Company’s Westfield tenement,
based on the recent WSP Australia Pty Ltd and Runge Pincock Minarco
Global desk-top surveys and all other data at his disposal from the
40 years of exploration in the Arckaringa Basin. Once this report
is completed and an exploration programme has been approved by the
board, Mr Newell will then oversee the ground exploration activity,
which will be carried out by a well-regarded, Adelaide based geological contracting and
consulting company, Euro Exploration Services, Pty Ltd (“Euro
Exploration”).
Euro Exploration provides both specialist consultant advice and
a complete exploration service, ranging from project generation and
management, to the supply of field personnel and equipment,
including the latest in ground magnetometer technology for
geophysics surveying.
Dr Fran Parker, the Tenement
Manager with whom the Company has now worked with for many years,
and who provides a key relationship between the South Australian
government’s mining department and Altona, has agreed to support
the completion of the project. Dr Parker is a highly experienced
geologist and well connected with the mining regulator.
Nick Lyth, CEO of Altona,
commented, “From the outset of moving the new strategy forward,
we realised we needed to achieve two things quickly; firstly, to
build a solid team of local experienced mining professionals and
secondly, to tighten the focus of exploration into a tenement which
we believe will bring the best return to shareholders.
“The team we have now assembled has, we believe, more relevant
experience in the target area, whilst being cheaper and more
effective than our previous consultants. Once this initial survey
phase of the Westfield tenement has been presented to the Company,
we will be in a better position to report back to the market with
the next phase of exploration for the project.
“We remain cognisant that the Australian coal industry is
currently in an up-turn, with coal prices at a very high level and
coal exports from Australia at a
record level. To this end we hope to execute our strategy quickly,
to take advantage of this market trend.”
“I am finally pleased to be able to report that Mr Zhang,
Chairman of Altona, has recovered following his hospitalisation and
has resumed his role of contact and liaison with our joint venture
partner, Sino-Aus Energy Group Ltd.”
This announcement contains inside information for the purposes
of Article 7 of Regulation (EU) 596/2014.
-ends-
For further information, please visit www.altonaenergy.com or
contact:
Altona Energy
plc
Nicholas Lyth, Chief Executive Officer |
+44 7769 906 686 |
Leander (Financial
PR)
Christian Taylor- Wilkinson |
+44 7795 168 157 |
Northland Capital
Partners Ltd (Nomad and Broker)
Matthew Johnson / Gerry Beaney (Corporate Finance)
John Howes (Corporate Broking) |
+44 20 3861 6625 |
About Altona Energy
Altona is listed on the London Stock Exchange’s AIM
market. Its principal focus is on the evaluation and
development of the Company’s flagship Arckaringa Project to exploit
the significant coal seams contained in three exploration licences
covering 2,500 sq. kms in the northern portion of the Permian
Arckaringa Basin in South Australia. The Project has an
historic resource exceeding 7.8 billion tonnes of coal (1.3 billion
tonnes historic under JORC 2004).