19 February
2024
Trident Royalties
Plc
("Trident" or the
"Company")
Portfolio Update: Sonora
Lithium Royalty
Trident Royalties Plc (AIM: TRR, OTC: TDTRF), the
diversified mining royalty company, is pleased to provide an
update in respect of Sonoroy Holdings Limited ("Sonoroy"), its 50%-held joint venture
which agreed to acquire a 3.0% Gross Revenue Royalty (1.5%
attributable to Trident) (the "Royalty", and the acquisition thereof,
the "Transaction") over the
Sonora Lithium Project in Mexico ("Sonora") from the Estate of Colin
Orr-Ewing (the "Estate").
In accordance with the terms of the
agreement to acquire the
Royalty, the long-stop date to complete the
Transaction has been extended to 31 December 2026. Trident has also
agreed that other than in limited circumstances, the repayment date
for its loan to Sonoroy is extended until the earlier of: (i) 31
December 2026; or (ii) completion of the Transaction.
As previously notified, the Royalty
is the subject of litigation between the Estate and Bacanora, which
is being adjudicated by the Court of King's Bench of Alberta.
Trident may terminate the JV if the litigation is finally resolved
in favor of Bacanora, or if it is unresolved by the long-stop date.
In addition, the project operator Ganfeng Lithium Co, Ltd., and its
Mexican subsidiaries, have filed administrative review recourses
before the Secretary of Economy in relation to the cancellation of
nine lithium concessions by the Mexican Government, which comprise
the Sonora project. Ganfeng notes the
cancellation as violating both Mexican and international
law.1 Trident is not required to
provide funding in respect of Sonoroy to enable it to complete the
acquisition, if at the time of funding there are changes to
Mexico's regulatory regime which, in Trident's reasonable opinion,
materially affects the Sonora project.
Adam Davidson, Chief Executive Officer of Trident
commented:
"The Sonora royalty has the potential to become a Tier 1
royalty, providing exposure to a long-life lithium project with
expansion optionality and operated by a world class lithium
specialist. The transaction structure provides Trident with the
ability to participate in the potential significant upside
associated with the project from a low-cost and protected
position.
This extension to complete the Sonora royalty acquisition
gives sufficient time to allow a resolution to both the Alberta
litigation, as well as the administrative review filed by Ganfeng
regarding the cancellation of the project concessions. The Estate
and its advisors continue to be excellent partners, and we look
forward to continued work alongside them as the situation
evolves."
References
1:
Source: Ganfeng Lithium 30 June 2023 Interim Results dated 29
August 2023
(https://www.ganfenglithium.com/ir_detail_en/id/2640.html
)
The information contained within
this announcement is deemed to constitute inside information as
stipulated under the Market Abuse Regulations (EU) No. 596/2014
which is part of UK law by virtue of the European Union
(Withdrawal) Act 2018. Upon the publication of this announcement,
this inside information is now considered to be in the public
domain.
** Ends
**
Contact details:
|
Trident Royalties Plc
Adam Davidson / Richard
Hughes
|
www.tridentroyalties.com
+1 (757)
208-5171 / +44 7967 589997
|
|
Grant Thornton (Nominated
Adviser)
Colin Aaronson / Samantha Harrison /
Enzo Aliaj
|
www.grantthornton.co.uk
+44 020
7383 5100
|
|
Liberum Capital Limited (Joint
Broker)
Scott Mathieson / Cara
Murphy
|
www.liberum.com
+44 20
3100 2184
|
|
Stifel Nicolaus Europe Limited
(Joint Broker)
Callum Stewart / Ashton
Clanfield
|
www.stifelinstitutional.com
+44 20
7710 7600
|
|
Tamesis Partners LLP (Joint
Broker)
Richard Greenfield
|
www.tamesispartners.com
+44 20
3882 2868
|
|
St Brides Partners Ltd (Financial PR
& IR)
Susie Geliher / Zoe
Briggs
|
www.stbridespartners.co.uk
+44 20
7236 1177
|
About Trident
Trident is a growth-focused
diversified mining royalty and streaming company, providing
investors with exposure to a mix of base battery, precious, and
bulk metals.
Key highlights of Trident's strategy
include:
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Building upon a royalty and streaming
portfolio which broadly mirrors the commodity exposure of the
global mining sector (excluding fossil fuels) with a bias towards
production or near-production assets, differentiating Trident from
the majority of peers which are exclusively, or heavily weighted,
to precious metals;
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Acquiring royalties and streams in
resource-friendly jurisdictions worldwide, while most competitors
have portfolios focused on North and South America;
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Targeting attractive small-to-mid
size transactions which are often ignored in a sector dominated by
large players;
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Active deal-sourcing which, in
addition to writing new royalties and streams, will focus on the
acquisition of assets held by natural sellers such as: closed-end
funds, prospect generators, junior and mid-tier miners holding
royalties as non-core assets, and counterparties seeking to
monetise packages of royalties and streams which are otherwise
undervalued by the market;
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Maintaining a low-overhead model
which is capable of supporting a larger scale business without a
commensurate increase in operating costs; and
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Leveraging the experience of
management, the board of directors, and Trident's adviser team, all
of whom have deep industry connections and strong transactional
experience across multiple commodities and
jurisdictions.
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The acquisition and aggregation of
individual royalties and streams is expected to deliver strong
returns for shareholders as assets are acquired on terms reflective
of single asset risk compared with the lower risk profile of a
diversified, larger scale portfolio. Further value is expected to
be delivered by the introduction of conservative levels of leverage
through debt. Once scale has been achieved, strong cash generation
is expected to support an attractive dividend policy, providing
investors with a desirable mix of inflation protection, growth and
income.
Forward-looking
Statements
This news release contains forward‐looking information. The
statements are based on reasonable assumptions and expectations of
management and Trident provides no assurance that actual events
will meet management's expectations. In certain cases,
forward‐looking information may be identified by such terms as
"anticipates", "believes", "could", "estimates", "expects", "may",
"shall", "will", or "would". Although Trident believes the
expectations expressed in such forward‐looking statements are based
on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of
future performance and actual results or developments may differ
materially from those projected. Mining exploration and development
is an inherently risky business. In addition, factors that could
cause actual events to differ materially from the forward-looking
information stated herein include any factors which affect
decisions to pursue mineral exploration on the relevant property
and the ultimate exercise of option rights, which may include
changes in market conditions, changes in metal prices, general
economic and political conditions, environmental risks, and
community and non-governmental actions. Such factors will also
affect whether Trident will ultimately receive the benefits
anticipated pursuant to relevant agreements. This list is not
exhaustive of the factors that may affect any of the
forward‐looking statements. These and other factors should be
considered carefully and readers should not place undue reliance on
forward-looking information.
Third Party Information
As
a royalty and streaming company, Trident often has limited, if any,
access to non-public scientific and technical information in
respect of the properties underlying its portfolio of royalties and
investments, or such information is subject to confidentiality
provisions. As such, in preparing this announcement, the Company
often largely relies upon information provided by or the public
disclosures of the owners and operators of the properties
underlying its portfolio of royalties, as available at the date of
this announcement.