Ivanhoe declares strategic fairness funding in Renergen, a South African rising vitality and helium producer
Ivanhoe acquires unique proper to barter an offtake settlement for electrical energy generated from Renergen’s fuel and photo voltaic hybrid-power facility
Sandton, South Africa–(Newsfile Corp. – March 14, 2022) – Ivanhoe Mines (TSX: IVN) (OTCQX: IVPAF) Government Co-Chair Robert Friedland introduced right this moment that the corporate has secured choices to make use of electrical energy generated from renewable, inexperienced, solar energy along with liquefied pure fuel (LNG) to energy its Tier-One Platreef palladium, rhodium, nickel, platinum, copper and gold venture in South Africa.
Development of Ivanhoe’s first solar energy plant on the Platreef Mine is about to start subsequent month. The preliminary 5-megawatt (MW) plant is anticipated to start supplying clear, solar-generated electrical energy to the mine in early 2023.
“We’ve got dedicated to our stakeholders that we’ll discover each avenue accessible to reduce the environmental influence of manufacturing metals which might be vital to the electrification of the worldwide economic system,” mentioned Mr. Friedland. “Powering our large Platreef Mine with dependable electrical energy generated by ‘inexperienced energy’ choices, equivalent to photo voltaic and pure fuel, presents a 24-hour-a-day various to the coal-fired nationwide electrical grid and dramatically reduces Platreef’s carbon emissions. An influence plant working on pure fuel generates roughly 50% fewer carbon dioxide emissions than one burning coal.”
“Having a dependable supply of unpolluted, renewable electrical energy from a solar-power plant on the Platreef Mine is a vital step in our journey towards net-zero carbon emissions,” Mr. Friedland added.
In 2021, South Africa’s authorities formally raised the licencing threshold for embedded era tasks from 1 MW to 100 MW, clearing the way in which for miners to begin producing their very own electrical energy.
Design and engineering of the preliminary 5-MW photo voltaic plant on the Platreef Mine is full and development is about to begin subsequent month, with commissioning anticipated in early 2023. The solar-generated energy from this preliminary plant will probably be used for mine improvement and development actions, in addition to for charging Platreef’s battery-powered underground mining fleet, additional decreasing carbon dioxide emissions.
Development is progressing quickly on the Platreef Mine and preliminary manufacturing is anticipated from the primary part of operations in Q3 2024. Ivanhoe expects the Platreef Mine to require roughly 30 MW of put in electrical energy for its Part 1 operations, and roughly 100 MW for its Part 2 operations at full manufacturing.
Ivanhoe Mines not directly owns 64% of the Platreef Undertaking by way of its subsidiary, Ivanplats, and is directing all mine improvement work. The South African beneficiaries of the accepted broad-based, black financial empowerment construction have a 26% stake within the Platreef Undertaking. The remaining 10% is owned by a Japanese consortium of ITOCHU Company; Japan Oil, Gasoline and Metals Nationwide Company; ITC Platinum Improvement Ltd., an ITOCHU affiliate; and Japan Gasoline Company.
Strategic funding in Renergen Restricted provides Ivanhoe the unique proper to barter an electrical energy offtake settlement
Along with shifting ahead on developing its first solar-power facility on the Platreef Mine, Ivanplats has acquired the unique proper to barter an offtake settlement with South Africa-based Renergen Restricted for electrical energy generated from Renergen’s fuel and photo voltaic hybrid-power facility to be constructed on the Virginia Gasoline Undertaking situated in South Africa’s Witwatersrand Basin, roughly 600 kilometres south west of the Platreef Mine.
Ivanhoe is assured that the electrical energy generated from Renergen’s fuel and photo voltaic hybrid-power facility could possibly be mixed with Ivanhoe’s solar energy services to supply Platreef with an uninterruptible energy provide to fulfill the mine’s base-load necessities.
Renergen is an rising producer of helium, vitality and liquefied pure fuel (LNG) with near-term manufacturing and gross sales of compressed pure fuel (CNG) and helium from its Virginia Gasoline Undertaking that includes exploration and manufacturing rights of 187,000 hectares (1,870 sq. kilometres) of fuel fields throughout Welkom, Virginia, and Theunissen, within the Free State, South Africa.
Ivanhoe has made an preliminary fairness funding in Renergen of roughly US$13 million, which supplies Ivanhoe an approximate 4.35% curiosity in Renergen’s issued and excellent shares. Ivanhoe additionally has the appropriate to appoint one director to Renergen’s board of administrators, and is entitled to customary anti-dilution rights. Renergen is listed on the JSE and A2X exchanges beneath the ticker REN and on the ASX beneath the ticker RLT.
Beneath the phrases of the preliminary funding, Ivanhoe has the choice to subscribe for as much as 25% of the whole issued and excellent Renergen shares following the evaluation interval, at a ten% low cost to the 30-day VWAP, in consideration for money or shares in Ivanhoe. Additional to this second subscription, Ivanhoe may have the choice to subscribe for as much as 55% of the whole issued and excellent shares, at a ten% low cost to the 30-day VWAP, to supply the fairness funding for Part 2 on the Virginia Gasoline Undertaking.
Ivanhoe Mines and Renergen senior officers signal the settlement for Ivanhoe’s preliminary fairness funding in Renergen. Entrance row (L-R): David King (Chairman, Renergen), Marna Cloete (President, Ivanhoe Mines), Stefano Marani (CEO, Renergen); Again row (L-R): Nick Mitchell (COO, Renergen), David van Heerden (CFO, Ivanhoe Mines).
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The Virginia Gasoline Undertaking’s pure fuel formation is a results of a freak cosmological occasion roughly two billion years in the past that noticed the most important recognized asteroid ever to hit the planet plough into South Africa’s Witwatersrand geological complicated, close to the city of Vredefort.
The influence of the large asteroid created the most important recognized crater on earth (the Vredefort Crater), roughly 330 kilometres in diameter. The influence basically created a seal, capping ultra-rich underground deposits of uranium and thorium in place, permitting the minerals to endure pure radioactive decay to provide alpha particles, which turn into helium.
The influence of the asteroid additionally established the perfect situations for early micro organism to congregate. Very similar to how chlorophyll in vegetation feed off radioactive vitality from the solar, these early micro organism developed to feed off the radioactivity from the uranium to metabolize carbon within the rocks into methane. Thus, the alpha particles serve not solely the aim of making excessive helium concentrations, but additionally offering the vitality required to permit micro organism to dwell deep underground, which is why this fuel reserve has been categorized as renewable by the Petroleum Company of South Africa.
Whereas the methane produced from the Virginia Gasoline Undertaking just isn’t zero-carbon, it’s believed to be regenerated by these micro organism, which explains the exceedingly lengthy lifespan of the wells, most of which have been drilled a number of many years in the past and have proven no indicators of reducing in circulate.
The Virginia Gasoline Undertaking additionally comprises one of many richest helium concentrations recorded globally, with readings of as much as 12%. Helium is in excessive demand to be used in a spread of applied sciences, together with superior rockets and spacecraft, semiconductors, fibre-optic cables, pc chips, welding, industrial leak detection, cryogenics, nuclear energy vegetation, laboratory gear and MRI machines.
Aerial view of Renergen’s Part 1 compressed pure fuel and helium manufacturing facility on the Virginia Gasoline Undertaking, which is about for commissioning in Could 2022.
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Renergen’s Virginia Gasoline Undertaking is situated roughly 600 kilometres southwest of the Platreef Undertaking.
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Geological map exhibiting Renergen’s Manufacturing and Exploration Rights (within the purple circle) on the rim of the Vredefort Crater, fashioned by an asteroid strike roughly two billion years in the past, the place pure helium is produced from the radioactive decay of ultra-high uranium concentrations beneath the crater.
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Extra data will be discovered on Renergen’s web site at https://www.renergen.co.za/
Platreef charging forward with securing the water and energy wanted to increase the mine into one of many world’s largest and greenest PGMs, nickel and copper producers
Ivanhoe lately introduced that the Platreef Mine had signed new agreements for the rights to obtain native, handled waste water to produce the majority water wanted for the deliberate phased improvement at Platreef.
Beneath the phrases of a brand new offtake settlement, the Mogalakwena Native Municipality has agreed to produce not less than three million litres per day of handled effluent, as much as a most of 10 million litres per day for 32 years, from the date of first manufacturing, sourced from the city of Mokopane’s Masodi Waste Water Therapy Works, at present beneath development.
“The Platreef Undertaking has excellent, near-surface exploration potential to considerably add to the venture’s present nickel-rich mineral sources,” mentioned Mr. Friedland. “To capitalize absolutely on Platreef’s unbelievable mineral endowment, we have to first safe sustainable sources of energy and water.”
About Ivanhoe Mines
Ivanhoe Mines is a Canadian mining firm centered on advancing its three principal tasks in Southern Africa: the event of main new, mechanized, underground mines on the Kamoa-Kakula copper discoveries within the Democratic Republic of Congo and on the Platreef palladium-rhodium-platinum-nickel-copper-gold discovery in South Africa; and the intensive redevelopment and upgrading of the historic Kipushi zinc-copper-germanium-silver mine, additionally within the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Kamoa-Kakula is the world’s quickest rising main copper mine. Kamoa-Kakula started producing copper concentrates in Could 2021 and, by way of phased expansions, is positioned to turn into one of many world’s largest copper producers. Kamoa-Kakula is being powered by clear, renewable hydro-generated electrical energy and is projected to be among the many world’s lowest greenhouse fuel emitters per unit of metallic produced. Ivanhoe Mines has pledged to attain net-zero operational greenhouse fuel emissions (Scope 1 and a couple of) on the Kamoa-Kakula Copper Mine. Ivanhoe is also exploring for brand new copper discoveries on its Western Foreland exploration licences within the Democratic Republic of Congo, close to the Kamoa-Kakula Undertaking.
Data contacts
Traders: Invoice Trenaman +1.604.331.9834 / Media: Matthew Keevil +1.604.558.1034
Cautionary assertion on forward-looking data
Sure statements on this information launch represent “forward-looking statements” or “forward-looking data” throughout the which means of relevant securities legal guidelines. Such statements contain recognized and unknown dangers, uncertainties and different elements, which can trigger precise outcomes, efficiency or achievements of the corporate, the Platreef Undertaking, or business outcomes, to be materially totally different from any future outcomes, efficiency or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements or data. Such statements will be recognized by way of phrases equivalent to “could”, “would”, “might”, “will”, “intend”, “anticipate”, “imagine”, “plan”, “anticipate”, “estimate”, “scheduled”, “forecast”, “predict” and different related terminology, or state that sure actions, occasions or outcomes “could”, “might”, “would”, “would possibly” or “will” be taken, happen or be achieved. These statements mirror the corporate’s present expectations relating to future occasions, efficiency and outcomes, and converse solely as of the date of this information launch.
The forward-looking statements and forward-looking data on this information launch embrace with out limitation, (i) statements relating to preliminary manufacturing is anticipated from Platreef’s first part of operations in Q3 2024; (ii) statements relating to plans to generate an preliminary 5 MW {of electrical} energy from an adjoining solar energy plant; (iii) statements relating to development of the photo voltaic plant is about to begin subsequent month and commissioning is anticipated in early 2023; and (iv) statements relating to expectations that the Platreef Mine would require roughly 8 MW of put in electrical energy for its Part 1 operations, and roughly 100 MW for its Part 2 operations at full manufacturing.
All such forward-looking data and statements are primarily based on sure assumptions and analyses made by Ivanhoe Mines’ administration in mild of their expertise and notion of historic tendencies, present situations and anticipated future developments, in addition to different elements administration imagine are applicable within the circumstances. These statements, nevertheless, are topic to a wide range of dangers and uncertainties and different elements that would trigger precise occasions or outcomes to vary materially from these projected within the forward-looking data or statements together with, however not restricted to, sudden adjustments in legal guidelines, guidelines or laws, or their enforcement by relevant authorities; the failure of events to contracts to carry out as agreed; social or labour unrest; adjustments in commodity costs; sudden failure or inadequacy of infrastructure, industrial accidents or equipment failure (together with of shaft sinking gear), or delays within the improvement of infrastructure, and the failure of exploration applications or different research to ship anticipated outcomes or outcomes that might justify and assist continued research, improvement or operations. Different vital elements that would trigger precise outcomes to vary from these forward-looking statements additionally embrace these described beneath the heading “Threat Elements” within the firm’s most lately filed MD&A in addition to in the latest Annual Data Type filed by Ivanhoe Mines. Readers are cautioned to not place undue reliance on forward-looking data or statements. Sure of the elements and assumptions used to develop the forward-looking data and statements, and sure of the dangers that would trigger the precise outcomes to vary materially are offered in technical reviews accessible on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and on the Ivanhoe Mines web site at www.ivanhoemines.com.
Though the forward-looking statements contained on this information launch are primarily based upon what administration of the corporate believes are affordable assumptions, the corporate can’t guarantee traders that precise outcomes will probably be per these forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this information launch and are expressly certified of their entirety by this cautionary assertion. Topic to relevant securities legal guidelines, the corporate doesn’t assume any obligation to replace or revise the forward-looking statements contained herein to mirror occasions or circumstances occurring after the date of this information launch.
The corporate’s precise outcomes might differ materially from these anticipated in these forward-looking statements on account of the elements set forth beneath within the “Threat Elements” part within the firm’s 2021 This autumn and Yr-Finish MD&A and its present annual data type.
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