23rd Apr 2014 07:00
23 April 2014
Orogen Gold
("Orogen" or the "Company")
Final Results for the year ended 31 December 2013
Orogen Gold plc (AIM: ORE), the AIM quoted gold exploration company, announces its audited results for the year ended 31 December 2013.
Operational Highlights
Mutsk gold project Armenia
· Agreed a Memorandum of Understanding ("MOU") with Georaid CJSC covering the Mutsk gold project in southern Armenia
o $2.5 million / 80% earn-in option on Mutsk gold property to be completed by the end of August 2016
o After year-end signed a full joint venture agreement to implement the terms of the MOU
· Positive confirmatory drilling results in mid-year followed by completion of a ten hole diamond drill programme in late 2013
o Orogen confirmatory drill holes returned substantially higher gold grades than previously reported, including 11.0m @ 5.56 g/t Au and 10.2m @ 5.73 g/t Au
o Mineralised zone confirmed by drilling over almost 1km of strike, with possible extension to over 2km
o First step-out drilling discovers wide gold zone at shallow depth - 59.5m @ 0.42 g/t Au and 42m @ 0.78 g/t Au
o Possibility of extensive lower-grade zones at shallow levels indicates potential for a large gold deposit at Mutsk
Deli Jovan, Serbia
· 1,426.2m drill programme completed at Gindusa West to follow up on high gold grade trenching results.
o High grade gold intervals at shallow depths beneath significant surface mineralisation
o Assay results include 0.5m @ 102 g/t Au and 0.7m @ 83 g/t Au
Financial and Corporate Highlights
· £650,000 raised before costs through the issue of 216,666,667 new ordinary shares at 0.3p per share, in October 2013
· Cash at 31 December 2013 of £1,208,000
· Loss for the year of £4.18 million, after an impairment charge of £3.7 million on the carrying value of the Deli Jovan exploration and evaluation asset. The Group's focus in the near term is on the Mutsk project and the Board considers it prudent to reduce the carrying value of the Group's interest (£1.75million) in Deli Jovan to reflect the exploration expenditures incurred on the project to date
· Appointment of Adam Reynolds as Non-Executive Chairman
Enquiries:
Orogen Gold Plc | +353 1662 8395 |
Ed Slowey, CEO | |
Alan Mooney, FD | |
WH Ireland Limited (Nominated Adviser and Joint Broker) | +44 (0) 20 7220 1666 |
Tim Feather | |
James Bavister | |
Hume Capital Securities plc (Joint Broker) | +44 (0) 20 3693 1470 |
Jon Belliss | |
Walbrook (Public and Investor Relations) | +44 (0) 20 933 8780 |
Paul Cornelius/ Guy McDougall | |
Chairman's Statement
2013 was a difficult year for many junior gold exploration companies with a 28% fall in gold prices and a tight market for equity capital. Against this backdrop it has become increasingly important for junior explorers to focus their spending and to concentrate on executing efficient work programmes to recognise near term value for shareholders. Following a share placing in late 2012, Orogen entered the current year in a strong financial position to progress the Deli Jovan project in Serbia and to expand the asset base with the Mutsk project in Armenia.
Technical Progress and Mutsk Discovery
In January 2013 Orogen agreed a Memorandum of Understanding with Georaid CJSC covering the Mutsk gold project in southern Armenia. This represented a rare opportunity to acquire a project with early indications of significant gold mineralisation within an emerging epithermal gold district. Having been encouraged by the initial results achieved at Mutsk, Orogen moved quickly to advance the project and completed a ten-hole diamond drill programme in late 2013. Results from the programme included the exciting discovery of a new thicker, more extensive lower grade gold zone which is open along strike and down-dip. This opens up the possibility of substantial lower-grade zones at shallow levels and indicates potential for a large gold deposit at Mutsk.
At Deli Jovan a drill programme was completed at Gindusa West to follow up on high gold grade trenching results discovered in late 2012 and 2013. Significant gold-bearing intervals were encountered. Orogen is encouraged by the gold grades and widths encountered but continuity of the gold-bearing veins has proved more difficult to establish. Following an impairment review of the carrying value of exploration and evaluation assets, an impairment charge of £3.7 million has been made against the carrying value of the Deli Jovan asset. The Company remains committed to the Deli Jovan gold project and in conjunction with our partner on the project, Orogen is reviewing the results encountered to date to identify a 2014 work programme to advance the project.
Corporate
I was pleased to be appointed Chairman of Orogen in November 2013, following the resignation of John Barry from the Board as non-executive Chairman. Ed Slowey and Alan Mooney continue as Chief Executive and Finance Director respectively and Michael Nolan remains as a Non-Executive Director.
In October 2013, the Company raised £650,000 before costs through the issue of 216,666,667 new ordinary shares at 0.3p per share. At 31 December 2013 the Group held cash resources of £1,208,000 (2012: £1,621,000).
The Year Ahead
With a challenging market for juniors expected to continue in 2014, it is important for companies to have a flexible approach to the development of their projects. Orogen is very excited about the prospects for the Mutsk gold project and will continue to prioritise the development of the project over the coming months, working towards the delineation of a resource within the near-surface Mutsk gold discovery.
Adam Reynolds
Chairman
22 April 2014
Strategic Report
Strategy and Objectives
The principal activity of Orogen Gold is the development of mineral exploration and production projects in Europe, with an emphasis on gold exploration and project development.
Orogen's strategy is to acquire prospective early-stage growth opportunities at a low entry cost within the European arena. The three steps in the Orogen strategy are to:
(1) Identify and secure low entry cost gold projects in underexplored and frontier locations in Europe;
(2) Undertake an efficient cost controlled programme of project evaluation and appraisal; and
(3) Move to establish gold resources at an early stage.
Orogen currently operates two gold exploration projects.
The Mutsk Gold Project ("Mutsk") is located in the Syunik Province in southern Armenia 210km southeast of the capital city Yerevan at about 2,000m elevation.
Orogen has an exclusive Joint Venture agreement with Georaid CJSC ("Georaid"), an Armenian registered company, to earn an 80% interest in Mutsk by incurring a total of US$2.5 million in exploration expenditure on the project by the end of August 2016. Limited historic exploration had been carried out until drilling by Georaid in 2011, which intersected low sulphidation epithermal-type pyrite-gold mineralisation in altered and brecciated tuffs, similar in age to those that host the Lydian International high sulphidation Amulsar gold deposit located 30km to the northwest, also in Armenia. Confirmatory drilling by Orogen has demonstrated both higher gold grades than previously reported and wider zones of lower grade mineralisation.
The Company's second gold exploration project, the Deli Jovan Gold Project ("Deli Jovan"), is located in the Zajecar municipality in eastern Serbia approximately 250km from Belgrade.
Under the terms of an earn-in agreement with Reservoir Minerals Inc. ("Reservoir"), a company listed on the TSX Venture Exchange (ticker: RMC), Orogen received the exclusive right to earn-in to an initial 55% interest in Deli Jovan by committing CAD$1.5 million to the project by 23 June 2012. This earn-in was completed in June 2012 and Orogen has the exclusive option to earn-in to an additional 20% interest by incurring total exploration expenditures on the project of CAD$3.5 million (an additional CAD$2.0 million) by 23 December 2013. Orogen is reviewing the completion of the additional 20% earn-in with Reservoir. Deli Jovan is an historic gold mining camp which was last in production prior to World War II with the major part of gold production taking place during the period from 1900 to 1912. There are two former gold mines within the Deli Jovan exploration permit area and there had been no systematic exploration of the property since mining ceased in 1938. There is clear evidence that significant mining activity occurred on the property episodically from Roman times to the earlier part of the last century.
Mutsk Gold Project
In January 2013, Orogen signed a Memorandum of Understanding ("MOU") on the Mutsk Gold Project in Southern Armenia. Our initial aim was to confirm the potential of a low-sulphidation gold epithermal system discovered by our partner, Georaid, in 2011 through a programme of shallow vertical drilling. Orogen's verification work comprised re-logging and sampling of existing drill core, as well as detailed mapping and sampling in the under-explored permit area.
Orogen believed that the original sampling during the 2011 drill programme may have understated the grades and widths of the mineralisation zone, as not all drill core was sampled and the sampling process may not have been fully compliant with best practice. Re-sampling of most of the historic core was carried out under Orogen's supervision, with tighter quality control over the process. This confirmed substantially higher grades and greater widths than reported previously. Confirmatory drilling in Q2 2013 of six short vertical and angled holes undertaken by Orogen repeated the higher tenor of gold grades, with assay intervals including 11.0m @ 5.56 g/t Au (hole OG13-01) and 10.2m @ 5.73 g/t Au (hole OG13-02). The re-sampling and drilling programme undertaken by the Company suggested that the mineralised zone extends over almost 1km of strike, with possible extension to over 2km. The results demonstrated an exciting new gold discovery at shallow depths within an established epithermal district.
Following interpretation of the results of the initial drill programme at Mutsk, Orogen agreed with Georaid to move into Phase 2 of the programme detailed under the MOU which includes an exclusive option to earn-in to an 80% interest in the project. A full Joint Venture Agreement was drawn up and signed in February 2014 to implement the terms of the MOU.
Following a share placing in October 2013, Orogen accelerated the Mutsk evaluation and appraisal programme and in Q4 2013 successfully completed a 10-hole diamond drill programme totalling 921.2 metres. Short vertical and angled diamond drill holes were laid out to test the continuity of the north-south zone of hydrothermal alteration and epithermal gold mineralisation previously located by widely-spaced drilling. Logging of drill core from several holes identified zones of kaolinite-sericite-quartz alteration which is associated with gold mineralisation in earlier drill holes. Assay results suggest that the higher grade gold values seen to date are centred around structural loci and/or intrusive quartz-diorite dykes along the southern part of the Mutsk trend. These high grade centres appear to be linked to a newly-discovered wider zone of interest.
An extensive interval of hydrothermal alteration and lower-grade gold mineralisation was located in angled hole OG13-15 along profile 3610N which was stepped out about 60m to the west of previously recorded high grade intercepts in vertical holes OG13-01 (11m @ 5.56 g/t Au) and DDB-04 (39m @ 3.64 g/t Au). An intercept of 59.5m from 28.0m to 86.5m down-hole depth in OG13-15 averaged 0.42 g/t Au, including an interval of 8.0m @ 0.87 g/t Au. Another angled hole, OG13-04, drilled previously closer to the original high-grade intercepts, had cut 42m @ 0.78 g/t Au, including 9m @ 2.5 g/t Au. While the true width of these two longer intercepts is not yet clearly established, current interpretation suggests that they may be close to true width. This is the first drill profile to test the interpreted down-dip extension of the main mineralised trend at Mutsk and opens up the possibility of extensive lower-grade gold zones at shallow levels. These new intercepts are not dissimilar in width and gold tenor to some of those reported at the Lydian International's Amulsar gold project which is currently at feasibility stage.
Deli Jovan Gold Project
Following excellent trenching results from work carried out in 2012 at Deli Jovan, the Board took the decision to prioritise drilling to focus on shallow testing of the high grade trench discoveries at Gindusa West.
Exploration undertaken during the year included further high-density soil sampling, followed by step-out trenching from the 2012 discovery trench, TAG-2 (3m @ 29.6 g/t Au), in order to extend and define the mineralised zone.
Highlights of the 2013 work based on channel sample assaying include a 3.5m intercept grading 61.42 g/t Au including a 2m zone assaying 107 g/t Au in trench T6, on a separate structure to the north of the TAG-2 intercept. A further 350m to the northwest, trench T8 intersected a mineralised shear zone assaying 5.75 g/t Au over 2.0m, including 1m @ 8.88 g/t Au.
Interpretation of the results received indicated that the main gold-mineralised, steeply north-dipping east-west shear structure intersected in trench TAG-2 extends for at least 300m. Widths of mineralised structures ranged from 1.0-13.0m and gold grades ranged from 1.44-29.55 g/t Au. The continuity and width of this zone at surface was considered particularly encouraging as previously mapped vein structures at Deli Jovan tend to be narrower and of shorter strike extent.
A programme of 15 short, angled drill holes totalling 1,426.2m was completed at Gindusa West in Q3 2013 to test the sub-surface extensions of the mineralised zones encountered in trenching. Holes were drilled on seven profiles 40m apart, covering much of the 300m strike length of the complex shear zone.
Significant gold-bearing intervals from the drill programme included 0.5m @ 102 g/t Au (hole DE-GEA06), 0.7m @ 83 g/t Au (hole DE-GEA10) and 5.1m @ 3.04 g/t Au (hole DE-GEA14). Continuity of the shear zone was confirmed along strike and as far as the drilled depth of 80-90m vertically. Quartz veining and gold-bearing pyrite mineralisation within the zone however appear to be irregularly distributed, with some locally very high grade intercepts, sometimes enveloped by lower grade haloes.
Financial
The loss for the year amounted to £4,176,000 (2012: £651,000). The loss for the year comprised general and administrative expenses of £493,000 (2012: £499,000), a share based payment charge of £1,000 (2012: £196,000), an impairment charge of £3,702,000 (2012: nil) and finance income of £20,000 (2012: £37,000). The impairment charge is as a result of a review performed on the carrying value of the exploration and evaluation assets related to the Deli Jovan Gold Project.
FUTURE DEVELOPMENTS
Mutsk Gold Project
Orogen is now preparing for the re-commencement of exploration at Mutsk after the spring snow-melt. Plans include completion of a ground geophysical survey to trace known mineralisation along strike and down-dip beneath overburden and cover rocks as well as searching for new, previously unidentified, targets. Further drilling will focus on delineation of both high grade and more extensive low-grade gold mineralisation, as well as follow-up of targets defined by soil sampling and geophysical surveying. Only a small part of the prospective target has been drill tested to date and newly-identified zones of wide, lower grade mineralisation further support the potential for a large gold deposit at Mutsk.
The Company plans to focus its work on Mutsk in the early part of 2014 because the positive results received to date suggest that this has strong potential for discovery of shallow gold mineralisation at relatively low exploration cost compared to the Deli Jovan project.
Deli Jovan Gold Project
Orogen is continuing to review the 2013 drilling results in tandem with the surface trench data in order to assess the potential for definition of a shallow gold resource at the Gindusa West and Gindusa Mine zones. The Company is encouraged by some of the high grades and widths encountered. The mineralised vein systems appear to continue to depth, however the continuity along strike is less clear and detailed infill drilling could be required to establish the extent of such continuity.
Orogen has the exclusive option to earn-in to an additional 20% interest in Deli Jovan beyond its current 55% interest. The Company is currently reviewing the earn-in and a future work programme on the project with its partner, Reservoir.
Ed Slowey Alan Mooney
Director Director
22 April 2014
Consolidated statement of profit or loss and other comprehensive income
For the year ended 31 December 2013
2013 | 2012 | |
£'000 | £'000 | |
Continuing operations | ||
Revenue | - | 7 |
Operational costs | - | - |
Gross profit | - | 7 |
General and administrative expenses | (493) | (499) |
Share based payments | (1) | (196) |
Impairment of exploration and evaluation assets | (3,702) | - |
Group operating loss | (4,196) | (688) |
Finance income | 20 | 37 |
Loss on ordinary activities before taxation | (4,176) | (651) |
Tax on loss on ordinary activities | - | - |
Loss for the year from continuing operations | (4,176) | (651) |
Attributable to: | ||
Equity holders of the parent | (4,175) | (651) |
Non-controlling interests | (1) | - |
Group loss for the year | (4,176) | (651) |
Exchange translation differences | 16 | 17 |
Total comprehensive loss for the year | (4,160) | (634) |
Attributable to: | ||
Owners of the parent | (4,159) | (634) |
Non-controlling interests | (1) | - |
| (4,160) | (634) |
Loss per share: | ||
Loss per share - basic and diluted, attributable to ordinary equity holders of the parent (pence) | (0.19) | (0.03) |
Consolidated statement of financial position
As at 31 December 2013
2013 | 2012 | |
£'000 | £'000 | |
Assets | ||
Non-current assets | ||
Exploration and evaluation assets | 2,136 | 4,986 |
Property, plant and equipment | 22 | 23 |
Total non-current assets | 2,158 | 5,009 |
Current assets | ||
Trade and other receivables | 82 | 368 |
Cash and cash equivalents | 1,208 | 1,621 |
Total current assets | 1,290 | 1,989 |
Total assets | 3,448 | 6,998 |
Equity and liabilities | ||
Equity | ||
Share capital | 3,057 | 2,841 |
Share premium | 11,704 | 11,325 |
Other reserves | 625 | 729 |
Retained earnings | (12,431) | (8,377) |
Equity attributable to owners of the parent | 2,955 | 6,518 |
Non-controlling interests | 402 | 403 |
Total equity | 3,357 | 6,921 |
Current liabilities | ||
Trade and other payables | 91 | 77 |
Total current liabilities | 91 | 77 |
Total liabilities | 91 | 77 |
Total equity and liabilities | 3,448 | 6,998 |
Consolidated statement of cash flows
For the year ended 31 December 2013
2013 | 2012 | |
£'000 | £'000 | |
Cash flows from operating activities | ||
Group operating loss | (4,196) | (688) |
Decrease/(increase) in trade and other receivables | 289 | (272) |
Increase/(decrease) in trade and other payables | 14 | (156) |
Impairment of exploration and evaluation assets | 3,702 | - |
Share based payments | 1 | 196 |
Net cash flow from operating activities | (190) | (920) |
Cash flow from investing activities | ||
Expenditure on exploration and evaluation assets and project earn-in | (852) | (1,016) |
Net cash inflow on acquisition of subsidiary | - | 130 |
Bank interest received | 20 | 37 |
Net cash flow from investing activities | (832) | (849) |
| ||
Cash flow from financing activities | ||
Net proceeds from issue of equity instruments | 595 | 1,360 |
Net cash flow from financing activities | 595 | 1,360 |
| ||
Net change in cash and cash equivalents | (427) | (409) |
Net foreign exchange difference | 14 | 26 |
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of year | 1,621 | 2,004 |
Cash and cash equivalents at end of year | 1,208 | 1,621 |
Consolidated statement of changes in equity
For the year ended 31 December 2013
Share capital |
Share premium |
Share based payment reserve |
Retained earnings |
Foreign currency translation reserve |
Total |
Non-controlling interests |
Total equity | |
£'000 | £'000 | £'000 | £'000 | £'000 | £'000 | £'000 | £'000 | |
Balance at 1 January 2012 | 2,567 | 10,239 | 516 | (7,726) | - | 5,596 | - | 5,596 |
Loss for the year | - | - | - | (651) | - | (651) | - | (651) |
Share based payments | - | - | 196 | - | - | 196 | - | 196 |
Foreign exchange translation reserve | - | - | - | - | 17 | 17 | - | 17 |
Acquisition of subsidiary | - | - | - | - | - | - | 403 | 403 |
Issue of share capital | 274 | 1,086 | - | - | - | 1,360 | - | 1,360 |
Balance at 31 December 2012 | 2,841 | 11,325 | 712 | (8,377) | 17 | 6,518 | 403 | 6,921 |
Balance at 1 January 2013 | 2,841 | 11,325 | 712 | (8,377) | 17 | 6,518 | 403 | 6,921 |
Loss for the year | - | - | - | (4,175) | - | (4,175) | (1) | (4,176) |
Share based payments | - | - | (120) | 121 | - | 1 | - | 1 |
Foreign exchange translation reserve | - | - | - | - | 16 | 16 | - | 16 |
Issue of share capital | 216 | 379 | - | - | - | 595 | - | 595 |
Balance at 31 December 2013 | 3,057 | 11,704 | 592 | (12,431) | 33 | 2,955 | 402 | 3,357 |
Notes
1 Financial Information
The financial information set out above does not constitute the Company's statutory accounts for the year ended 31 December 2013, but is derived from those accounts. The auditors have reported on those accounts; their report was unqualified and did not draw attention to any matters by way of emphasis without qualifying their report.
2 Loss per Share
Basic loss per share is calculated by dividing the loss attributable to equity shareholders by the weighted average number of ordinary shares in issue during the period:
2013 | 2012 | |
Loss after tax attributable to equity holders of the parent (£'000) | (4,175) | (651) |
Weighted average number of ordinary shares in issue (share in millions) | 2,220 | 1,955 |
Fully diluted average number of ordinary shares in issue (share in millions) | 2,220 | 1,955 |
Basic and diluted loss per share (pence) | (0.19) | (0.03) |
Basic and diluted earnings per share are the same, since where a loss is incurred the effect of outstanding share options and warrants is considered anti-dilutive and is ignored for the purpose of the loss per share calculation. The share options outstanding as at 31 December 2013 totalled 225,000,000 (2012: 265,000,000) and are potentially dilutive.
3 Exploration and Evaluation Assets
Armenia |
Serbia |
Total | |
£'000 | £'000 | £'000 | |
Cost |
|
|
|
At 1 January 2012 | - | - | - |
Acquisition of Deli Jovan Exploration d.o.o. | - | 1,132 | 1,132 |
Transfers | - | 3,173 | 3,173 |
Additions | - | 681 | 681 |
At 31 December 2012 | - | 4,986 | 4,986 |
Carrying value 31 December 2012 | - | 4,986 | 4,986 |
Cost |
|
|
|
At 1 January 2013 | - | 4,986 | 4,986 |
Additions | 387 | 465 | 852 |
At 31 December 2013 | 387 | 5,451 | 5,838 |
Impairment |
|
|
|
At 1 January 2013 | - | - | - |
Impairment charge | - | 3,702 | 3,702 |
At 31 December 2013 | - | 3,702 | 3,702 |
Carrying value 31 December 2013 | 387 | 1,749 | 2,136 |
As part of the annual impairment review of asset carrying values, a charge of £3,702,000 was recorded in relation to the Deli Jovan project in Serbia.
A multiple of exploration expenditure method was used when calculating the recoverable value of the project. As there is not yet an established mineral resource for the project, a discounted cash flow model was not appropriate. Orogen has the exclusive option to earn-in to an additional 20% interest in Deli Jovan beyond its current 55% interest. The Company is currently reviewing the earn-in and a future work programme with its partner on the project.
4 Events after the Reporting Period
In February 2014 the Company, through its wholly owned subsidiary Orogen Gold (Armenia) Limited, signed a Joint Venture Agreement with Georaid CJSC ("Georaid"), an Armenian registered company and holder of Exploration Licence EHTV 29/066 ("Mutsk gold project"), granting the Company an exclusive option to earn-in to the Mutsk gold project in southern Armenia. Under the Joint Venture Agreement the Company has the option to acquire an 80% undivided interest in Georaid by incurring exploration expenditures of US$2.5 million by 31 August 2016.
5 Annual Report and Annual General Meeting
The Annual Report for the year ended 31 December 2013 will be posted to shareholders on 25 April 2014 and will be available to download from the Company's website at www.orogengold.com on 25 April 2014.
The Annual General Meeting of Orogen Gold plc will be held at Finsgate, 5-7 Cranwood Street, London EC1V 9EE on 19 May 2014 at 12.00 noon. Notice of the AGM is now available on the Company's website at www.orogengold.com.
Related Shares:
Sosandar