ATEX Announces Early Achievement of 100% Ownership of the Valeriano Project
ATEX Announces Early Achievement of 100%
Ownership of the Valeriano Project
Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - December 19, 2024) - ATEX Resources Inc. (TSXV: ATX) ("
ATEX
"
or the "
Company
") is pleased to announce that it has earned a 100% interest in the Valeriano Copper
Gold Project ("
Valeriano
" or the "
Project
"), pursuant to the terms of an option exercise agreement
dated December 19, 2024 between ATEX Valeriano SpA, a wholly owned subsidiary of ATEX ("
ATEX
Valeriano
"), and Sociedad Contractual Minera Valleno ("
SCMV
"), a Chilean private company and the
vendor of Valeriano, that supports and amends the underlying option agreement dated August 29, 2019
between ATEX Valeriano and SCMV, as amended (collectively, the "
Option Agreement
"). ATEX was
able to complete early achievement of 100% ownership of Valeriano by satisfying all the conditions set
out under the Option Agreement, including the final payment due to SCMV of US$8 million, which was
fully satisfied through the issuance of common shares of the Company (the "
Shares
").
"We are very pleased to achieve this significant milestone ahead of schedule," stated Ben Pullinger,
President and CEO of ATEX. "Valeriano is now wholly owned by ATEX and satisfying the final payment
in Shares at the request of the vendor allows us to maintain balance sheet strength and fund our
exploration efforts which will continue to unlock value for shareholders."
Option Agreement
Under the terms of the Option Agreement, in exchange for ATEX earning the remaining 51% interest in
the Project, SCMV received approximately 7.5 million Shares at a deemed issue price of approximately
C$1.52 per Share, in full satisfaction of the final payment of US$8 million due to SCMV; prior to closing
ATEX held a 49% interest in Valeriano. The issue price of the Shares was based on the five-day volume
weighted average price of the Shares on the TSX Venture Exchange (the "
TSXV
") prior to closing.
SCMV has transferred its ownership in the Project to ATEX Valeriano and SCMV retains a 2.0% net
smelter royalty ("
NSR
") on the Project. All the Shares issued to SCMV are subject to a customary four
month hold under applicable Canadian securities law. The transaction remains subject to the final
approval of the TSXV.
ATEX will also grant two 0.25% NSRs to certain other holders entitled to such NSRs pursuant to the
terms of the Option Agreement and ATEX's acquisition of its 100% interest in Valeriano. ATEX will
retain a right of first refusal on both such NSRs, as well as the NSR issuable to SCMV. In connection with
its early acquisition of its 100% interest in Valeriano, ATEX and SCMV have also agreed that the NSR
to be retained by SCMV will be formalized within 60 days hereof rather than immediately upon closing of
ATEX's full exercise of the option.
The Option Agreement was originally entered into on August 29, 2019, and subsequently amended in
January 2020, February 2021 and August 2023. Prior to closing, ATEX had earned a 49% interest in
Valeriano by making aggregate cash payments totalling US$4.25 million to SCMV and incurring
US$10.0 million of exploration expenditures on the Project, including the completion of more than 8,000
metres of drilling. Subsequent to earning its 49% interest in the Project, ATEX has also incurred more
than US$5 million of additional exploration expenditures at Valeriano, another key condition under the
Option Agreement that was satisfied prior to its early exercise of the option.
About ATEX
ATEX is exploring the Valeriano Copper-Gold Project which is located within the emerging copper gold
porphyry mineral belt linking the prolific El Indio High-Sulphidation Belt to the south with the Maricunga
Gold Porphyry Belt to the north, located in the Atacama Region, Chile. This emerging belt, informally
referred to as the Link Belt, hosts several copper gold porphyry deposits at various stages of
development including, Filo del Sol (Filo Mining), Josemaria (Lundin Mining), Los Helados (NGEX
Minerals/JX Nippon), La Fortuna (Teck Resources/Newmont) and El Encierro (Antofagasta/Barrick
Gold). The Valeriano Project hosts a large copper gold porphyry mineral resource: 1.41 billion tonnes at
0.67% CuEq (0.50% Cu, 0.20 g/t Au, 0.96 g/t Ag and 63.80 g/t Mo), which includes a higher-grade core
totaling 200 million tonnes at 0.84% CuEq (0.62% Cu, 0.29 g/t Au 1.25 g/t Ag and 55.7 g/t Mo), as
reported by ATEX on September 12, 2023
1
.
For further information, please contact:
Ben Pullinger,
President and CEO
Email:
Aman Atwal,
Vice President, Business Development and Investor Relations
Email:
1-647-398-9405
or visit ATEX's website at
www.atexresources.com
.
CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS:
This news release contains forward-looking statements, including predictions, projections, and
forecasts. Often, but not always, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such
as "plans", "planning", "expects" or "does not expect", "continues", "scheduled", "estimates",
"forecasts", "intends", "potential", "anticipates", "does not anticipate", or describes a "goal", or variation
of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might"
or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks,
future events, conditions, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results,
performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, prediction, projection,
forecast, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements.
Such forward-looking statements include, among others: the issuance of certain NSRs to SCMV and
other holders, receipt of final TSXV approval of the transaction, plans for the evaluation of exploration
properties, including the Valeriano Project and all aspects related to the timing and extent of exploration
activities including the drill program contemplated in this news release.
Although ATEX has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events or
results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking statements, there may be other factors
that cause actions, events or results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no
assurance that forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events
could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place
undue reliance on forward-looking statements.
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its regulation services provider has reviewed or
accepts
responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of the content of this news release.
1
Please see NI 43-101 technical report titled "Independent Technical Report for the Valeriano
Copper-Gold Project, Atacama Region, Chile" by Joled Nur, CCCRRM-Chile, and David Hopper,
CGeol, with an effective date of September 1, 2023, filed at
www.sedarplus.ca
on October 25, 2023, for
additional details on the 2023 Mineral Resource Estimate for the Valeriano project.
To view the source version of this press release, please visit
https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/234563