Oriole Resources swings to first-half profit

West and Central Africa-focussed exploration company Oriole Resources reported a first-half pre-tax profit of £1.15m on Thursday - a significant improvement compared to a loss of £0.86m in the same period in 2023.

The AIM-traded firm said the gain was primarily driven by its agreement with Lanstead and the receipt of payments from BCM International.

Administrative expenses rose to £0.67m due to expanded exploration activities in Cameroon, where Oriole spent £1.13m on projects, including its fifth phase of drilling at Bibemi and soil sampling at Mbe.

Its cash balance also improved, standing at £0.84m as of 30 June, compared to £0.11m at the end of 2023.

In January, Oriole signed two earn-in agreements with BCM International for its Bibemi and Mbe projects.

Under the agreements, BCM gained a 10% interest in each licence and had the opportunity to earn up to a 50% interest by funding $4m in exploration per licence.

Oriole also secured success-based payments linked to JORC-classified resource milestones, offering the potential for additional revenue as the projects advance.

At Bibemi, the company’s gold resource estimate increased to 375,000 ounces, with further drilling underway to expand the resource.

Oriole also submitted an application for an exploitation licence in Cameroon, marking a key step toward developing an open-pit gold mine.

Meanwhile, at the Central Licence Package in Cameroon, trenching and soil sampling programmes revealed encouraging gold grades, supporting the company’s belief in Mbe as a significant gold discovery.

Oriole also received a two-year extension for its five Eastern-CLP licences.

In Senegal, Oriole’s partner Managem Group completed its earn-in at the Senala gold project, acquiring a 59% interest after spending $5.8m on exploration.

Oriole retained a 35% beneficial ownership, and said it saw continued value in the project, which was renewed for an additional three years.

The company also realised $0.3m from the sale of its interest in two Turkish mining projects, with ongoing efforts to monetize remaining legacy assets.

“The year started on a high note with confirmation of the BCM deals on both the Bibemi and Mbe licences,” said chair Eileen Carr.

“As suspected, this news positively impacted the share price, which in turn significantly increased the monthly proceeds received from Lanstead.

“Despite the initial market misgivings surrounding this financing, it has, in fact, proved beneficial at a time when raising finance in the junior mining sector was all but impossible. “We reached the first anniversary of the Lanstead transaction in August and the amount received to date is the equivalent of 0.24p per share, significantly higher than could have been achieved in the market in mid-2023, and despite the low share price experienced at the end of last year.”

At 1117 BST, shares in Oriole Resources were up 4.19% at 0.32p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.