Cora Gold losses narrow as it presses on with exploration

West Africa-focussed Cora Gold reported a total loss of $0.73m (£0.52m) in its final results for 2020 on Monday, narrowing from $1.48m in the prior year.

The AIM-traded firm, which is still pre-revenue, noted that it published a scoping study in January 2020 on the Sanankoro Gold Discovery, which included a scenario at a gold price of $1,500 per ounce showing a 107% internal rate of return and a $41.5m net present value, at an 8% discount rate.

It secured a conditional $21m term sheet with investment firm Lionhead Capital Advisors in June, to fund the future development of Sanankoro after the definitive feasibility study, which was on track to complete by the end of 2021.

The company raised more than $5.4m from the issue of shares during the year, and appointed Norman Bailie as its head of exploration, who is an accredited chartered professional geologist and manager with 29 years of experience in gold mining and exploration.

It also appointed Andrew Chubb, partner and head of mining at natural resources-focussed investment bank Hannam & Partners, as an independent non-executive director.

Since the year ended, the firm was awarded the Sanankoro II permit in March, and began its largest drill programme for up to 35,000 metres which was planned to complete by the end of July, with a dual focus on targeting resource growth and converting existing inferred resources to measured and indicated.

Initial results from the ongoing drill programme at Sanankoro included 54 metres at 2.07 grams of gold per tonne from 20 metres in hole SC0311, including two metres at 17.71 grams per tonne.

It also highlighted 34 metres at 2.14 grams of gold per tonne from 13 metres in hole SC0312, including three metres at 19.14 grams per tonne, and 24 metres at 2.5 grams per tonne from 16 metres in hole SC0331, including six metres at 5.53 grams per tonne.

At hole SC0332, it reported 23 metres at 1.55 grams of gold per tonne from 47 metres, along with 28 metres at 1.54 grams per tonne from 17 metres in hole SC0327, and 20 metres at 2.04 grams per tonne from 20 metres in hole SC0328.

Finally, it reported 16 metres at 1.67 grams of gold per tonne from 62 metres in hole SC0329, four metres at 9.06 grams per tonne from 81 metres at hole SC0325, and 13 metres at 2.09 grams per tonne from 68 metres in hole SC0309.

“Cora, although largely unaffected by the pandemic, saw many changes with numerous positive advances made,” said chief executive officer Bert Monro.

“The year started well, with the publishing of a scoping study for our flagship Sanankoro Gold Project, which highlighted its potential to be a highly profitable oxide mine.

“Investor confidence resulted in raising over $5.4m through the issue of shares, we signed a conditional $21m term sheet with Lionhead to fund the future development of Sanankoro and made two key appointments to drive the project and company towards the next stage of development.”

Monro said those changes positioned the company to “hit the ground running” in 2021, with the initiation of a much larger drilling campaign aimed at increasing the mineral resource estimate and the advancement of the definitive feasibility study, targeted for completion by the end of the year.

“With a busy schedule of work programmes planned, we look forward to the second half of 2021 and beyond with confidence.”

At 0946 BST, shares in Cora Gold were up 0.95% at 7.97p.