IRON Ironveld Plc

This announcement contains inside information

12 February 2025

Ironveld PLC

("Ironveld" or the "Company")

Operational Update

Ironveld PLC ("Ironveld" or the "Company"), the owner of a High Purity Iron ("HPI"), Vanadium, and Titanium project located on the Northern Limb of the Bushveld Complex in Limpopo Province, South Africa, is pleased to announce an operational update regarding key milestones achieved by the Company in relation to its DMS grade magnetite plant.

DMS Grade Magnetite Plant Progress

Significant progress has been made on the construction of the plant to produce DMS grade Magnetite, with key milestones already achieved:

·     Site preparation completed - including satisfaction of Health and Safety requirements, perimeter security in place, and construction of concrete support slabs and stockpiling of material for the bagging plant is now complete.

·      Generator acquired and delivered to the mine site for plant operations.

·      Contracts for all electrical works finalised and fully paid.

·   Delivery and installation of the milling plant, including mill, cradles, Mill Motor Control Centre and associated equipment secured, along with all necessary materials and labour for the plant installation and initial test production run.

On-site work is well underway, and the Company remains on track to commence commissioning the plant during February 2025. Following initial sample production, the plant will ramp up to 24-hour operations, targeting an initial output of 5,000 tonnes ("t") per month. Capacity will increase to 15,000t per month after installation and commissioning of a second, larger ball mill in March/April 2025.

Ironveld's mining team has now been mobilised to site, where stockpiles of pre-mined ore will be used for commissioning and initial production work, following which mining of fresh ore for continuing production will be undertaken.

Offtake Agreements

·     A firm initial offtake agreement has been secured for 500t per month, with demand from this end user estimated at around 1,000t per month.

·   A tender bid is currently being prepared for an additional 5,000t - 7,500t per month, with strong confidence in securing this contract due to the significantly lower logistical costs versus competitors, enabled by the close proximity of Ironveld's plant to the buyer.

·      Other strong expressions of interest are currently being reviewed from both DMS traders and end users.

Smelter Activities

Technical work is underway relating to the detailed design of the Water Atomised Powder pilot plant at the Rustenburg smelter. This work is being performed by a third party with extensive experience of the process, including producing water atomised iron and platinum powders. It is expected that the design work will be completed on schedule in March 2025.

Accounts Update

On 2 January 2025, following a delay to the publication of the Company's audited accounts for the year ended 30 June 2024 ("FY24 Accounts"), the Company's shares were temporarily suspended from trading on AIM in accordance with AIM Rule 19. Since this time the Company and its advisers have advanced the workstreams required to complete the audit process, although these remain in progress. The Company is working to publish the FY24 Accounts as soon as possible, following which trading in Ironveld's shares is expected to resume.

Further updates will be provided as required.

Kris Andersson, CEO of Ironveld, commented: "I am very pleased with the progress that we have made on all operational fronts. The successful completion of the DMS plant is expected soon and will begin to generate cash flow for the Company shortly thereafter. The plant is designed to initially produce 5,000 tonnes per month of finished product, but with future improvements that we have planned, we will be able to triple production to 15,000 tonnes. We are also making good progress on the Water Atomised Powder designs, which will offer exciting further upsides.  We are making good progress towards the completion of our report and accounts. Our structure in South Africa involves 7 subsidiary companies, which optimises the administration of our wide-ranging operations, from mining through mineral processing to smelting and sale of final products. Our engagement of new auditors, refreshing our local audit team after 12 years, has been good and, whilst it has taken longer than we had anticipated, we anticipate being in a position to publish our accounts soon. In the meantime, I would like to thank shareholders for their patience and support.

I look forward to keeping the market updated on what is an exciting period for the Company."

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